The Paragon Of Animals
by dr.evil99
Summary: When his self control slips, The Titans are forced to deal with Beastboy's dark side. BBRae possibly some RobStar later. Book one of the Titans Quintet
1. Rude Awakenings

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

CHAPTER ONE: RUDE AWAKENINGS

**Fear.**

**The scent was was unmistakable. It provided an invisible trail that she could follow easily with her keen olfactory senses. The predatory instincts within spurred the feral creature on, faster towards her hapless prey. Indeed, _instincts_ were the key, for there was no malice in her actions. It was simply the order of things: predator and prey. Cruel, but necessary.**

**Sensing that she was close to her quarry, she paused, training her keen ears to the surrounding forest, trying to judge the distance to the fleeing deer she had been tracking. Straining to hear her prey over the other sounds of the woodland night, she detected the sound of something racing through the underbrush, not more than 20 yards distant. It was time to close in and finish the hunt.**

**With a fluid grace that belied her great size, she bunched her powerful muscles and launched herself towards the deer. Her loping strides quickly ate up the short distance between her and the doomed animal. When she was within ten yards, she sprang into the air with her claws extended and her fang-filled muzzle agape. There was little the deer could do as she wrapped her arms around the terrified animal's torso and brought it to the ground. The fallen buck struggled briefly as she sank her three-inch long canines into it's throat, and then laid still. It was over in seconds.**

**Lifting her head from her kill, she raised her eyes to the night sky and let out a howl of triumph.**

* * *

With a startled gasp, Raven's eyes flew open as she surged upright in bed. Running a trembling hand through her sweat-dampened hair, she tried to gather her thoughts. 

_What was that? _she wondered to herself. _A nightmare? Strange... My nightmares are usually more ... Gothic, not so much like something out of Animal Planet._

Taking deep breaths, she tried to calm herself and slow her her racing heart. Through her bedroom window, she could see the first rays of dawn's light staining the eastern horizon. Glancing over at the clock at her bedside she abandoned any thoughts of retuning to sleep.

_Ehh... 5:45. The others are probably already getting up, so I might as well get moving. Besides, it's Beastboy's turn to cook, and I don't relish the idea of an all-tofu breakfast. Maybe I can grab something before he gets to the kitchen._

With a groan, Raven slid out of bed and made her way over to her closet and pulled out a clean blue cloak and black leotard, grabbed a towel and headed off to the bathroom to shower. After the events of her dream, she felt an intense need to bathe, as though she could feel the traces of the animal she had slain in her dream on her body. As much as she tried to clear her head, the remnants of the nightmare lingered in her mind, like the coppery taste of the deer's blood in her mouth.

_Suddenly breakfast doesn't sound quite so appealing..._

* * *

After her shower, Raven made her way from the living quarters on the upper levels of Titan's Tower to the living areas below. As she glided into the kitchen, she noticed Cyborg at the stove, intently watching over a skillet. As she reached into the cupboard for her chamomile tea, she glanced over at what the cybernetic teen was cooking. 

"Huh, that's a bacon, ham, and sausage omelette. Beastboy's going to be thrilled with you this morning," The dark empath observed, as she heated a mug of water in the microwave.

"Yeah, I kinda wanted to get some real food in my stomach before BB tries to cram all that tofu down our throats," Cyborg said with a grin. "Want some?"

"No thank you. I can't say that I really have much of an appetite this morning. I think I'll just stick with herbal tea."

Cyborg looked up from his cooking to peer at his teammate's face underneath her ever-present hood, noting the dark circles under her amethyst eyes. "You look a little out of it this morning, Raven. Ya feeling alright?"

"Just a bit of trouble sleeping, that's all. I should be fine once I'm up and active for a while. And that shouldn't be a problem, given that Robin's supposed to be putting us all through training today, if time permits."

Cyborg made a face, "Yeah, things have been sort of quiet in the city recently so I guess he thinks we might be getting soft, or something. Plus, he hasn't had Slade to obsess over for a while, so he's probably just full of pent-up energy. That boy _seriously_ needs a hobby."

"I guess his dedication is admirable, but its hard to admire anything after your fifth time through the obstacle course. But we have had it a little easy lately, so some practice couldn't hurt us, annoying as it is." As she made her way to the kitchen table with her teacup, she couldn't help but notice how quiet the tower was. "And speaking of annoying, where's Beastboy? He should be down here preparing breakfast, or what passes for it in his world, anyway."

Cyborg plated his food and joined her at the table. "Hmm, good question. It isn't like him to be late for a meal. His stomach is the one thing in life he always pays attention to." As Cyborg said this, he heard someone walking into the kitchen. He turned to see the small green form of his changeling teammate shuffling into the room, rubbing at his eyes. "Speak of the devil. How are ya, B?"

"Uh." the wiry teen grunted. The obviously still sleepy Beastboy sat plopped down in the chair next to Cyborg. Then, he sniffed the air a few times, catching the aroma of Cyborg's breakfast. With a vaguely disgusted look on his face, he got up and moved to the seat adjacent to Raven, at the other end of the table. "So, how many innocent animals died so that you could eat this morning, Cyborg?"

"It's just your basic omelette. Four eggs, cheese, ham, bacon, sausage..."

"What, no cow?" Beastboy quipped. "You're slipping, Cy."

Cyborg snapped his fingers. "You're right, BB. I _knew_ it was missing something. Thanks, bro!"

The green shapeshifter shuddered.

"Anyway, I figured you'd be too busy stuffing your face with bean curd to even notice what I'm eating." Cyborg said. "After all, your gonna need lots of energy for today, what with all the training that Robin has planned for us today."

"Aww, does it it have to be _today?_" Beastboy complained, "I didn't get a wink of sleep last night."

"You too, huh? Must be something contagious. Raven said she didn't sleep well either. Maybe there's a bug going around." Cyborg stroked his chin thoughtfully for a few seconds, then looked at his two teammates with a leer. "You know, a person could draw some interesting conclusions about a certain young man and a certain young woman not getting much sleep on the same night," Cyborg remarked with a mischievous gleam in his eye.

"A person shouldn't draw such conclusions, unless they wished to experience a whole new universe of pain." Raven's glare from under her hood could have melted lead.

"Umm... good point." Cyborg said, a bit nervously.

"So, what does our fearless leader have in store for us today, anyway?" Beastboy asked. "If it's the same old obstacle course training, big deal. I've been through that thing so many times I could do it blindfolded."

"Don't be too cocky, B," Cyborg warned. "I helped him upgrade the course with some of the new training equipment that Steel and the Justice League dropped off when they visited last month."

"The League gave us stuff?" Beastboy asked, scratching his head in perplexity. "I don't remember that..."

"You wouldn't. You were too busy ogling Supergirl to notice anything else that was going on," Cyborg noted with a laugh.

"Hey, I resent that! I was _not_ ogling Supergirl." Beastboy objected indignantly. The young changeling paused to think for a moment. "It was Zatanna."

Cyborg just shook his head.

Beastboy smirked at his friend. "Well, if you're going to accuse me of something, you should at least get the details right. Besides, you gotta admit, dude, the outfit... you know with the top-hat and all... it's pretty cute, isn't it?"

"I'll be sure to mention that to Mumbo the next time we see him. I'm sure he'll be flattered."

"Very funny, Cy."

Raven sighed, listening to her teammates light-hearted bantering. "This is just great," she groused, to no one in particular. "I get almost no sleep, I wake up for breakfast with no appetite, for stimulating conversation I get _you two_, and all I have to look forward to is being put through the ringer by our own resident Napoleon. My day couldn't possibly get any better."

"Joyous morning, my friends!" a gleeful feminine voice rang out from the kitchen entrance.

"I stand corrected."

Starfire floated into the room followed closely by Robin. The two Titans joined their fellows at the table.

Cyborg nodded a greeting to the auburn-haired alien girl. "Hi there, Star. It's nice to see somebody's in a good mood this morning."

"Of course I am," Starfire smiled warmly as she replied with her trademark zest, "Mornings are bright and filled with possibilities."

"Yeah, the disappointments don't usually show up until the afternoon." Raven remarked dryly. It wasn't that the half-demon girl necessarily disliked her Tamaranean comrade's bright, ebullient personae. In fact, she envied her a bit. She just wished she'd take it down a notch sometimes.

Starfire chuckled at Raven's characteristic sarcasm, then continued, "In addition I have been anxiously awaiting the training on the new course that Robin has prepared for us today. It is wise that we should periodically work to improve our skills."

"I think you've been hanging out with Robin too much, Starfire," Beastboy noted. "If we don't step in and do something soon, we'll have _another_ stiff to deal with around here." He cocked an eyebrow in the direction of Raven, seated directly to his right. The empathic girl pointedly ignored him, not wanting to get drawn into Beastboy's teasing.

"Don't pay attention to Beastboy, Starfire." Robin said. "He's just cranky because he hasn't been fed yet. Come to think of it, wasn't it your turn to make breakfast, BB?"

"Yeah, uh. Sorry Rob. I guess I was kinda late getting up this morning. I didn't sleep too good. I've been having some seriously freaky dreams the last few nights." Beastboy was looking at Robin as he spoke, and thus failed to notice the rather intent look that Raven gave him as he made this statement.

Robin smiled at him. "That's all right, Beastboy; I'll let you off the hook, _this time_." What the Titan's de facto leader didn't mention was that he wasn't any more fond of the green teenager's vegetarian cuisine than any of his fellow Titans. Actually, Starfire didn't mind it too much, but then the alien girl seemed to be able to consume absolutely anything with gusto.

Robin continued, "Everyone can make themselves a little something to eat, and we'll meet at the Training Room in..." He looked at the chronograph on his Titan's communicator, "90 minutes."

As soon as the Boy Wonder finished his statement, bright red lights in the ceiling began to flash and the Tower was filled with shrieking sound of alarms.

"...Or not," Beastboy said.

"Looks like we've got trouble. Let's see if we can find out what the situation is." Robin and his fellow Teen Titans rushed from the kitchen to the central room of Titan's Tower. Robin immediately made his way to the large computer terminal that dominated the room.

"Apparently, an alarm has been triggered at the Gotham Bank and Trust on 17th and Main," The masked Titan reported.

"Are any more details available?" Starfire inquired.

"No, it looks like someone's pulled a silent alarm. At a guess, I'd say that we've got a bank heist on our hands."

"_Attempted_ bank heist, you mean," Beastboy corrected him, as he looked at the screen from behind Robin's shoulder. There was an excited gleam in his emerald eyes. As much as he affected being a light-hearted jester, the shape-changing teen always took his crime-fighting duties quite seriously.

Robin gave him an encouraging nod. "That's the spirit. Since we don't have much in the way of details, we'll just have to play this by ear. " He looked at his friends, who had all gathered together at his side. "Guess we're in for some _on-the-job_ training today, guys. Let's move out!"

At their leader's command, the five Teen Titans set out to protect the citizens of Jump City yet again.

* * *

The Titans hastened to the location of the alarm, with Robin leading the way on the R-Cycle; Cyborg followed closely behind him in the T-Car. Above the two young men, Raven and Starfire flew side-by-side through the air effortlessly. Beastboy soared above the rest of the team, having taken the form of a falcon. The shapeshifting teenager used the bird's hyper-acute vision to scan ahead of the group for potential dangers. As Robin had said back at the Tower, they had no real info as to who or what they would find when they reached Gotham Bank and Trust, so they couldn't be too careful. 

When the team arrived at the financial institution, Robin stopped his cycle and dismounted. As he removed his helmet, his the rest of the group gathered around him. The leader of the Titans warily looked over the Bank and its surrounds, with Cyborg at his side.

"Actually, it's kinda quiet 'round here. There doesn't seem to be an emergency... maybe it was a false alarm..." Cyborg looked at his teammates hopefully.

As soon as the cybernetic teen finished his statement, the large glass doors at the bank's entrance were blown from their hinges by a blast of concussive force. Terrified civilians streamed out of the building, climbing over one another in a frantic attempt to get away from whatever was happening inside.

Beastboy gave Cyborg a wry look. "You were saying..."

From the ruined entryway of the bank, a diminutive, bald figure emerged, hovering in mid-air with the aid of a jet pack strapped to his back. It was a person with whom the Titan's were quite familiar: Gizmo, a member of the supervillain academy known as the H.I.V.E.

Robin's face was grim. "I should have known. It's been awhile since we've had trouble with the HIVE. And chances are, he's not alone.".

As he surveyed the area across the street, Gizmo spied the five heroes. "Crud, looks like the party-poopers have arrived." The childlike villain looked back over his shoulder and shouted into the building. "Hey you two! Quit messin' around and give me a hand. We have company!"

The tiny technophile was soon joined by his two usual partners-in-crime: the hulking, bestial Mammoth, who was carrying a large bag that appeared to be filled with cash, and the pink haired sorceress Jinx.

Robin face was a study in intensity as he addressed his companions. "Alright, team. It looks like Mammoth's carrying the money, so he's the priority. Starfire and I will handle him."

"I've got the runt," Cyborg said

"And I'll take care of the witch," Raven intoned from within the depths of her hood, her eyes already blazing white with power.

Robin nodded his affirmation. "Fine. Beastboy, give Raven a hand, if she needs it. But keep an eye on the situation. They'll probably try to make a break for it at some point, but don't let them get away. I want some answers from them." The Titan's commander gave his friends one last serious look. "Be careful, everyone. We all know how much trouble these three can be."

Robin then turned back to the trio of villainous youths, who had taken up a defensive position at the top of the stairs leading from the street to the bank.

_Classic high ground, _Robin thought. _This isn't going to be easy._

"I don't know why you're doing this," he called out to them, "but I'll give you _one_ chance to surrender and come quietly!"

His reply came in the form of a salvo of pink hex bolts, courtesy of Jinx, which Robin evaded easily with his excellent reflexes.

The young girl's catlike magenta eyes were mere slits as she spoke to Robin, her voice full of disdain. "Sorry, Boy Blunder. We're not feeling too accommodating today."

"I guess that's it, then. Titans, Go!" At the sound of Robin's familiar battle cry, the Teen Titans rushed their opponents, each making for their pre-selected targets.

Starfire, Her jade eyes incandescent with righteous fury, launched a barrage of starbolts at Mammoth, which the massive H.I.V.E. Member dodged with ease, due to Starfire's lack of accuracy. Marksmanship was not the concern of the young Tamaranean, however. Her true purpose was to provide the necessary cover to allow Robin to outflank Mammoth. As the smoke cleared from Starfire's bolts, Robin dashed in and launched himself into the air, attempting to land a powerful flying heel kick to the side of Mammoth's head.

Unfortunately, the brutish villain sensed Robin's advance, and was able to brace himself for the attack, taking most of the blow with little effect. He retaliated with a wild roundhouse punch that would have surely knocked the Titan senseless, had he not been quick enough to duck it. Robin quickly removed his collapseable Bo staff from his belt and assumed a defensive stance. Overhead, Starfire looked frantically for a opening to employ her starbolts, but was worried by Robin's close proximity to their opponent. Rather than risking his safety, she hung back and watched the two boys exchange blows, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Meanwhile, Cyborg wasn't having an easier time with Gizmo. The tiny miscreant was using his jetpack-enhanced speed advantage to dodge Cyborg's attempts to shoot him down with his sonic cannon. Gizmo returned fire with a small laser mounted on his backpack. The beam weapon scored a direct hit to Cyborg's torso. To Gizmo's dismay, however, it was dispersed by the Titan's armor, leaving only a slight scorch mark at it's point of impact.

"What the-! You pit-sniffin' cludgehead! How'd you do that?" Gizmo yelled, seemingly outraged at his weapon's failure.

Cyborg grinned at him. "Upgrades, shorty!"

At the bottom of the stairway, Raven was engaged in combat with Jinx . The H.I.V.E.'s resident sorceress was having great difficulty with her blue-cloaked opponent, however, as her hex bolts were ineffective against the shields of black energy that Raven generated.

Seeing that she would need to adjust her tactics, Jinx fired off a massive volley of her pink force bolts, which passed harmlessly over Raven's head.

"You're making this too easy," Raven growled as raised her hand. From her fingertips a torrent of dark force burst forth, in the shape of a great black talon.

The energy claw wrapped around Jinx's slender form, pinning her to the wall behind her. Raven regarded her immobilized opponent coldly.

"It's over, Jinx." Raven's voice was grim.

Jinx looked at her captor for a moment, and then smiled maliciously. "It sure is..."

Raven heard a loud metallic shriek behind her. Letting go of her enemy she turned her head to look back over her shoulder, and froze as she saw the source of the sound; Jinx's bolts hadn't missed their intended target at all, as a huge street lamp, weakened by the earlier deluge of pink energy, came crashing down towards the empath. Her opponent forgotten, she could only stare at the doom approaching her. Just before the expected impact, Raven was pushed aside by a swiftly moving flash of green fur, as Beastboy, now in the shape of a tiger, pounced on her and pushed her away from the falling mass of metal.

As this happened, Gizmo broke off from his fight with Cyborg and yelled to his companions. "That's enough! Lets get outta here, guys!" As he said this, he released a cloud of thick black smoke from his backpack that caused Cyborg to loose sight of his diminutive enemy as he made his retreat. At the same moment, Mammoth, hearing Gizmo's call, evaded a powerful overhand staff blow from Robin, and picked up the young man by his cape. With a roar, he flung the helpless Titan directly at Starfire, who was quickly descending in an attempt to aid her friend. Breaking off her dive, she caught the masked boy easily with her superhuman strength. Mammoth used the distraction to make his escape as well, money still in hand.

"Nice catch," Robin said with a slight smile as they hovered in midair.

"It was no problem, Robin!" the Tamaranean girl blushed prettily at the close proximity of the boy in her arms.

On the street below, Beastboy shifted back into his true shape and looked down at the gray girl, his face a reflection of his anxiety. "Are you alright, Raven?"

"Yes, I'm OK, thank you." Raven replied, as she looked up from her supine position, with Beastboy still on top of her. "You can get off me, now." she spoke with exaggerated casualness.

"Oh, right, ...Sorry, Rae!" the embarrassed changeling felt himself flushing slightly as he stood up and helped the irritated Raven to her feet. As he did so, he saw Jinx quickly fleeing the scene of the battle, with the other H.I.V.E. members following close behind.

"Hey gang!" Beastboy called to his teammates, "They're trying to get away!"

"We see 'em, let's get moving, guys!" Cyborg called as ran northward up 17th avenue, with the other Titans joining the pursuit.

The H.I.V.E. teens had a sizable head start, however, and were able to duck around a corner after leading the Titans for a few blocks. When the Titans came to the intersection, there was no trace of their quarry.

"Where did they escape to?" Starfire asked as she looked around the area. The side street they had turned down ended it a blind alley with no obvious exits.

"We can find out quick enough," Robin replied. He looked over at Beastboy. "Do you think you can track them?"

"No prob, Rob!" He said, as he shifted into the form of a wolf. His sensitive nose to the ground, Beastboy followed the trail up the alley and behind a dumpster. Behind the trash receptacle, there was no further sign of the three criminals, but Beastboy noticed something on the ground. He signaled his companions over. "Come take a look at this!"

When they arrived at his side, Beastboy pointed to the open manhole on the ground. "The scent ends here," he informed them. "I think they went down there."

"Then that's where we're going, too," Robin said firmly. " We have to recover the cash, and I still want to know what they're up to. Let's move!" With Robin in the lead, the Titans made their way down the ladder, one at a time.

At the bottom, they found themselves in a narrow, low-ceilinged sewer passage, no more than ten feet from wall to wall. The floor of the passage was covered in several inches of cold , filthy water. It was quite dark, and the stench of decay filled the air.

"Ugh! It is most fortunate that we did not have time to eat before we left the tower!" Starfire noted, with a slightly sick look on her face. "The smell here is most... overpowering..."

Robin looked about him. "The passage is blocked off with a grate back behind us, and it doesn't look like it's been forced, so they must of went..."he indicated up the passage, leading north "That way. Cyborg, can you give us some light?"

"Gotcha," A small lamp appeared out of Cyborg's shoulder, which illuminated the dark passageway for about ten yards in front of the group. "I'll take front, since I've got the light. I should be able to pick them up on infra-red, as well, so we might be able to get the drop on 'em."

Robin nodded. "Right. Everyone follow Cyborg. And stay together."

The Titans proceeded down the shadowy corridor for several minuted with no sign of their enemies until the sewer passage came to an four-way intersection. The passage the were currently following continued north while two other tunnels extended east and west. They paused to take a look around and decide on a course of action.

"Beastboy, is there any way you can tell which way they went? Maybe pick up a scent?" Robin asked him.

"No way, dude. Even if the ground wasn't covered with running water, It stinks too bad down here to smell _anything,_ no matter what I turn into," the green teenager replied with a grimace.

"I fear we shall have to separate," Starfire said with a look of concern on her features. "There is no other way to search all three tunnels quickly enough."

"I guess you're right, Starfire," Robin wasn't happy about the idea, but had no alternatives to offer, and every second gave the H.I.V.E. more time to make good their escape. "How should we do this?"

"I can take a passage by myself," Cyborg offered, "After all, I've got infra-red vision and enough firepower to at least hold them off by myself, for a while."

"I can change into something with good night vision," Beastboy put in.

"I am capable of making some light myself, Robin." Starfire announced, with one of her hands glowing with starbolt energy.

"Alright, then. Cyborg, you take north. Starfire and I will take the west tunnel, and Raven and Beastboy can take the east." Robin gave them a serious look. "As soon as you find anything, give the rest of us a call, so we can back you up. I don't want anyone taking on the H.I.V.E. by themselves, if they don't have to. Good luck, everyone and be careful!" With this, the group split up to search the three tunnels.

* * *

Raven and Beastboy didn't speak as they searched the east sewer tunnel, not that Beastboy would have been able to say much in the jaguar form he had shifted into, choosing the feline predator's shape for its excellent night vision and hearing. Raven glided along close behind, staying close so as not to become separated from her partner. She strained to hear something over the dripping water of the sewer, but to no avail. She was wholly dependent on her animal companion's acute senses to alert her to potential danger. 

After what seemed like miles of walking, the tunnel came to a stop, as they reached an area where the ceiling had caved in. The two teenagers stopped to examine the scene.

"There's no way they came this way," Beastboy declared as he shifted back into his humanoid form. "It looks like this has been blocked for years. You want to call Robin?"

"I guess we're done here," Raven said as she opened her communicator. "Maybe we can meet with Cyborg and give him a hand."

Beastboy stepped closer to her as she activated the device and signaled Robin. They pair were so intent on contacting their comrade, that they failed to notice a shimmering in the darkness of the tunnel behind them, almost like waves of heat rising off of a street on a hot summer's day. From the distortion, three shapes emerged, stalking slowly up behind the Titans, as they spoke to their leader.

"Robin, this is Raven. We've come to the end of the east tunnel."

"Did you find anything?" Robin's voice was rang tinnily out of the communicator's tiny speaker.

"No, just a dead end."

"What an appropriate choice of words!" a female voice said behind them.

With a gasp, Raven looked up from her communicator and spun around, just in time to see Mammoth's huge left fist strike her in the jaw with a powerful backhanded swing. The force of the blow lifted the slight girl off of the ground, and propelled her head-first into the wall of the passageway. The stricken Titan's skull hit the wall with a loud crack, and then she crumpled to the ground, motionless. Her communicator fell to the ground beside her,

"Raven!" Beastboy cried as he saw his friend fall. He turned to look down the dark passageway they had followed down, only to see the three H.I.V.E. members they had been searching for striding up to him. He couldn't figure out how the criminals had managed to take the two of them by surprise. "How did you-?" he stammered out, in shock.

"Cloaking device, snot brain!" Gizmo, striding on huge metal spider legs that were attached to his backpack, pointed to a small electronic instrument on the front of his outfit. "Did you like it?"

"I hope he did," Jinx stated, her eyes sparkling evilly. "It's just sad that he won't be able to tell anyone about it.

"Hope he puts up more fight than his girlfriend did," Mammoth grunted in his near unintelligible voice. "She's no fun at all."

Beastboy looked to Raven, where she laid deathly still. He felt his heart pounding in his chest with fear for his friends life.

_Raven, no! Oh my god_, _please don't be gone, please!_

He then looked back up at his attackers, who could plainly see the fear on his face.

"Aww, are you gonna cry now, little man?" the brutish Mammoth taunted with a chuckle. "Don't worry about her... we'll take _good_ care of her..."

Beastboy could take it no longer. With a bloodthirsty scream, he hurled himself at Mammoth, taking the shape of a lion as sprang at the huge criminal. Mammoth was unable to prepare himself for Beastboy's sudden attack, and was tackled to the floor of the passage, with the green lion's huge teeth dangerously close to his throat.

Beastboy's mind was aflame with rage...

_...I'll kill him... I'll Kill him... I don't care if Robin takes me to prison... if she's dead, I swear to god... I'll kill him!_

Beastboy wasn't given the chance to act out his possibly homicidal impulses, however, as the green lion was knocked from atop the struggling form on mammoth by a fusillade of pink hex bolts from Jinx, which sent him sprawling on his side some distance away. Before he had a chance to recover, Gizmo launched a small dart, with a thin strand of wire behind it, from a pistol-like device that he held. The dart lodged itself firmly in Beastboy's side.

"Bad Kitty!" Gizmo sneered as he looked on the fallen Titan. "Let's see if this will teach you some manners!" He pressed a button on the side of the device he held, and a massive electrical charge was sent into Beastboy's body, causing him to revert to his true form, as he screamed in agony.

_What do I do!_ He thought underneath the waves of pain, _I can't change, and they'll finish me before the other's get here...!_

The last thing he saw before rational thought left him was the still unmoving form of Raven on the ground not far from where he lay.

_I'm so sorry, Raven..._

* * *

"Raven? Raven? Are you there? Beastboy, Come in!" Robin voice was frantic as he tried to contact his teammates as he and Starfire raced down the west Tunnel. 

"Is there no word from our friends?" Starfire asked worriedly as she flew along side Robin, who was sprinting as fast as he could.

"No nothing, since Raven was cut off in mid transmission. And I can't get Beastboy, either. Something is very wrong..." He switched channels on his communicator. "Cyborg, meet me and Starfire in the east tunnel. .I think Raven and Beastboy are in trouble."

"I hear you Rob. I'm on my way!"

Robin closed his communicator and clipped it to his belt. He then suddenly felt hands wrapping around his waist

"What the-?" he felt his feet leave the ground as he was hoisted into the air by the hovering alien girl beside him

As Starfire lifted him from the ground she spoke to him. "Robin, I can carry you and still fly much faster than you can run, even it I am using my other hand to light our way. We must spare no haste in reaching our friends!"

"Right. Let's go!"

* * *

Gizmo looked down at Beastboy, who was laying on the ground, his body wracked with tremors. 

"Let's go, before this crudbrain's pals get here." He said.

Jinx walked slowly up to look at the fallen boy. "Wait, Gizmo. Some thing's wrong with him..."

Gizmo rolled his eyes. "Of course some thing's wrong with him! I just put 100,000 volts into him!"

"That's not what I meant, half pint!" She crept closer "He's... growling..."

Mammoth strode over to him and lifted his booted foot, preparing to bring it down on Beastboy's skull. "I'll quiet him down... Wah--!"

Suddenly, Beastboy's head snapped up and he grabbed Mammoth's ankle with an iron grip. Then, with an inhuman roar, he picked up the huge villain by his tree-trunk like leg and flung him some distance back down the corridor. Mammoth stood up and shook his head, trying to stop the ringing in his ears from his sudden impact with the ground. "How did the runt do that?" he asked, dazed.

Jinx's voice was very worried, as she watched Beastboy rise to his feet. "Guys, look! Some thing's happening to him!"

As he stood up, Beastboy screamed in pain, clutching his head. In the dim light of the sewer, the H.I.V.E. trio could just barely see what was happening to the Titan's body.

It was a change, but unlike the typical fluid shifting of form that the three were used to seeing the green changeling perform. Rather, this was a torturous, agonizingly slow change, as if his very body itself were trying to resist the metamorphosis. Shocked, they could actually see his bones change shape and re-arrange themselves, watch his muscles expand and fill out his powerful new frame. Razor sharp talons extended from his now massive hands. A dense coat of green fur sprouted to cover his body, and his small fangs lengthened into ferocious tusks.

When the change was complete, all remnants of the Titan were gone, and before them stood a Beast.

His green eyes gleamed with feral intelligence as he looked at them. The H.I.V.E. students were too shocked to move, being uncomfortably reminded of a cat looking at mice. Jinx spoke in a fearful whisper.

"Uh... did any of you know he could do that?"

The Beast let out a savage roar as he lunged at them...

TO BE CONTINUED (hopefully)

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Authors' notes:

First off, I'd like to express my boundless gratitude to Demigod, who has been a source of great inspiration to me. _Gracias, Amigo._

Also, special thanks to Regrem, who was always pushing me to do this, despite my trepidation.

Well, honestly, I never thought that ever I'd be doing something like this. What you have just read is the first piece of creative writing that I've done since my freshman year of High School, which was... well, lets just say it was a long time ago, and leave it at that (I'm feeling my age rather heavily at the moment; having just celebrated a birthday.)

I've been reading Fan Fiction for many years now, and started actively reviewing fairly recently. And that's part of why I decided to take this little project up, I guess. After all, what right have I to judge the hard work and creativity of others, if I haven't at least attempted the same thing myself?

So, behold the motivating power of guilt!

Anyway, even over the course of this first chapter, I can definitely say that I've learned a new appreciation for writers. I salute you you all.

I do sincerely hope that you're enjoying my first attempt at Fan Fiction as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Any feedback that you guys can give me me will be appreciated heartily, so please feel free to review!

Regards,

The Doctor

17 July 2005


	2. To Tame A Savage Beast

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Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

AKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

First off, I'd like to thank those who took the time to review chapter 1.

Demigod: I'm ecstatic that a writer who I respect as much as you enjoyed my story. Of course, we've discussed The Titans, comics, and Fanfic in general many times, so no need to dwell on those things here. Nevertheless, any success that I may achieve in writing is due in large part to your input and support, not to mention inspiration from your own tremendous fiction. So once again, I am in your debt. Thank you _very _much.

Regrem Erutaerc: Guess you were right about me after all, kid. Thank you for all your encouragement. You were one of the first people to suggest that I give writing a try. Thank you for having faith. And no, that's not what's going to happen.

I Should Be Studying: Thank you! Per your Request, here is the continuation. Study Hard!

BlueTitan: "_The Beast Within_" is one of my all-time favorite episodes of the show, as we are allowed to see a different side of Beastboy. In many ways, I'm trying to keep this story in that spirit . Glad you like what I've done; if it comes out half as good as your own "_Birthday Reflections_," I'll be very happy indeed.

Eva: Um... Okay, here it is! Seriously, I hope the wait wasn't too long; I'm not a particularly quick worker. But I aim to please, so no need to beg! Here you go... and I hope you enjoy it.!

BBcrazed: Yep, Beastboy and Raven are pretty much my favorite pairing on this show, even though it's not canon, strictly speaking. But the are canon in my little world; such is the beauty of Fanfic.

-Orange-: I'm not sure all the chapters will be _quite_ that long. Ch. 1 was longer than I intended originally, as I wanted to make it through the action sequence. Now that we're in the main plot, they might be a little shorter, but I'm still going to try to put in all the detail that I can. Thank you, and I hope you like the forthcoming chapters.

TDG3RD: I'm glad that you enjoyed the action sequence; I was quite nervous about it, and I still think that I could have done it better. Since it looks like I'm might be doing this for a while, I'll be able to practice. I hope this chapter, and the ones to follow, meet your expectations. Thanks.

the ubermann: Thank you, I appreciate that!

x0xFallenAngelxx: Gee, I don't think I've had one of the best _anythings_ before, so I'm glad to hear that!

FantasyObsessed: Oh boy... (gulp) no need to get violent... see, I updated! (Glances nervously around...) I hope this keeps me in your good graces... heh. (_...how did Raven know I'm ticklish..._)

caniluvagain: I'm hard at work! I hope you like all my future writings as much as ch.1. Thanks for the kind words.

Corvus no Ankoku the Ryukaiser: Okay, everybody, put the weapons down! I _promise_ to update. Cross my heart. You can all give Corvus his weapons back now...

Fallen Angel: "...Fantastic work..." wow! I never thought I hear anyone say anything like that about my first fic. Praise like that really helps my self-confidence, and spurs me to keep working. I hope I can continue to live up to that standard.

x: A person of few words, I see... but a 10/10 is still high praise indeed. Thank you.

dragoon-bane : Thanks. I tried to put a lot of detail into what I was writing... and while it can be a pain (and result in a lot of revisions) it's worth it in the long run, to me. I think that it helps bring the reader into the story. Thank you, and I hope you like this chapter.

Darkmagic101: I don't think BB will go _that_ far, but the H.I.V.E. kids will never take him lightly ever again, I can tell you that.

Chibi-Hime13: Don't worry! At this point, I foresee no character death in this fic. And if I _were_ going to kill someone off, it wouldn't be Raven... I love her too much.

RavennBeastboy: Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, for your review! Here's the update. I hope you like it.

Dannyspudge: Greetings from across the pond. Nice to see I've gone international (I'm a huge fan of England and things from there, particularly Monty Python and Newcastle Brown Ale.) Thanks for bringing up grammar. I work hard to make my writing as polished as I can. That said, there's a thousand little things in ch.1 that bug me. Hopefully, successive chapters can be more professional. Thanks again.

Valecia92: Yes, "The Beast Within" is one of my personal favorites, as well (along with "Spellbound'' and ''Birthmark".) That, along with my fondness for the Comic Book, were very influential on me. I'm very happy that you like what I've done, and I hope my work continues to please you. Thanks! (go BBRae.)

Cassandra-Cruxshadows: As you wish... here is the continuation. Thanks for the love!

The Mad shoe1: Read on, and your questions may be answered (and new ones raised, perhaps...)

Raven of Azarath: I hear and obey, My Lady...

CHAPTER 2: To Tame A Savage Beast...

As they exited the western sewer passage, Robin and Starfire paused at the junction of the four tunnels to look around for Cyborg.

''Where is he?'' Robin wondered aloud. " I told him to meet us here..."

"He has probably already proceeded down the tunnel, Robin" Starfire said as she hovered in the middle of the intersection, still carrying the Boy Wonder with one arm, as if he were a mere child. "No doubt he is as concerned for his friends as we are, and decided to attempt to reach them, rather than wait for our arrival.''

Robin considered this. "You're probably right, Starfire. Let's head down the passage, and If we don't run into him right away, I'll call him."

"All right Robin. Hang on!" Using her free hand to illuminate the darkness with her green starbolt energy, the alien girl grasped the Titan's leader tightly around his waist as she flew down the eastern tunnel that their friends Raven and Beastboy had started down earlier. They had not gone more than a few hundred yards down the dark corridor when they came upon Cyborg, who was running down the tunnel with his sonic cannon at the ready, and a look of grim determination upon his features.

Robin called out to his teammate, "Cyborg! Have you found any sign of the others?"

The Cybernetic teen paused as his friends joined him, "Nothing, Robin. I wasn't very far down the north tunnel when you called me, and I got back to the junction pretty quick, so I decided to get a head start. You were pretty vague on the communicator; what happened to Raven and BB?"

Robin sighed. "I'm not sure, I'm afraid. Raven called me to say that they had come to the end of the passage, and then she was suddenly cut off. I tried to call her back, but I can't reach her. I also tried to contact Beastboy, but he's not responding, either. If I had to guess, I'd say they ran into in the H.I.V.E., but I'm not taking anything for granted. Let's hurry, but stay alert for traps."

With as much haste as they dared, the three made their way down the damp tunnel, the lamp mounted in Cyborg's shoulder providing limited light in the darkened shaft. Although they strained with all their senses to penetrate the tenebrous atmosphere that loomed around them, all they could detect was the scuttling of rats, and their own footsteps splashing in the shallow water that pooled on the floor. They noticed no sign of either the H.I.V.E., or their friends.

Then, after what seemed an eternity, Cyborg's acute auditory sensors detected a sound coming around a bend in the tunnel ahead. It was indistinct, but it was definitely moving their way, and quickly. He called them to a halt.

"Guys, wait! Some thing's coming this way."

"Could it be our friends?" Starfire asked, with an anxious note in her voice.

"Couldn't tell ya, Star. The acoustics of this place are too screwy to make anything out clearly. But whatever it is, It's gonna be here in a sec!"

Robin was fully alert now. "All right, everybody. Get ready." He drew his staff from his belt, as Starfire marshaled her starbolt energy, causing her hands and eyes to glow with intense emerald light. Cyborg took up a defensive stance, powering up his arm-mounted sonic cannon.

The sound, now clearly identifiable as running footsteps, came closer to the Titans. Then, Mammoth, carrying Gizmo on his back, burst out of the darkness, sprinting as fast as his legs would carry him. The huge criminal was bleeding from numerous cuts and abrasions on his face, arms and torso. Gizmo's backpack, which contained his various technological devices, gadgets, and weapons, was severely damaged, exposed wiring trailing sparks as Mammoth carried him down the sewer passage. Both of the teenage villain's faces were pale, with expressions of mindless fear plastered across their features.

Heedless of the presence of the three Titans, he barreled straight into Cyborg, knocking the Titan to the ground. As if he didn't even notice the obstruction, Mammoth continued to run. Without even attempting to attack them, he quickly made his way completely through the ranks of the astonished Titans, and fled back up the tunnel the three had just come down, not even glancing back over his shoulder at them.

Cyborg looked up at his teammates, his confusion and embarrassment written plainly on his face. "What was up with that?" He rose to his feet and made as if to pursue the two criminals. "Quick, guys! We gotta go after them!"

Robin, however, put a hand on his arm, stopping him . "Wait, Cyborg! We can worry about them later. Finding Raven and Beastboy is more important right now."

Meanwhile, Starfire was peering down the corridor, her glowing green eyes straining to penetrate the darkness. "Robin, Cyborg, Someone else is coming our way. Let us be ready this time!"

Robin quickly came up with a plan. "Cyborg, turn off your light, and use your infra-red vision. We'll all take position on the sides of the tunnel. When you see them, turn on your lamp and we'll grab them. Does that sound good to you?"

Cyborg nodded. "Alright, let's do it." He extinguished the light.

As they prepared themselves, they heard a female voice calling out from around the bend in the tunnel, "Mammoth, wait up! I can't keep up with you, you stupid oaf! Don't leave me behind!"

The footsteps got closer, and as they came around the bend, Cyborg sprung the trap. He re-activated his lamp, and the runner froze with a gasp, blinded by the sudden brightness.

It was Jinx. The young witch looked quite disheveled; her clothing was soaked and covered in grime, as though she had taken a tumble at some point during her flight. One of the horn-like pigtails she normally wore her pink hair in had come loose, and the strands hung limply down one side of her face.

Recovering from her momentary disorientation, Jinx raised her hands, as if to launch her hex bolts at Cyborg, but Starfire was too quick for her. The alien girl dashed up from behind the Sorceress, and wrapped her up in a bear hug, pinning her arms to her sides.

"Let me go, let me go! " Jinx struggled ineffectually against Starfire's superhuman strength. " I've got to get out of here!"

Robin strode up to the captured witch, his eyes boring into hers. "Why Jinx? What's going on? What are the three of you trying to get away from?"

"And what did you do with Beastboy and Raven?" Cyborg asked angrily.

Jinx looked at them, her eyes wide with fright. "W-we have to get out of here. Please, let's get out of here before it gets us!"

"_What_, Jinx?" Robin asked, "Before _what_ gets us?"

Just then, the four teenagers heard a blood-chilling howl, a call of animalistic rage, echoing from down the tunnel. It was a sound that the Titans knew all too well.

"That, you morons! I'm trying to get away from your little green pet! After we attacked him and the goth, he went nuts! He changed into some kind of monster and he..." Jinx gulped, the fear evident on her face as she continued. "...We even tried to give up - we were ready to go to _jail._ But your psycho friend decided to try to take us all out - permanently!"

"Oh, no..." Starfire's said sadly. "Beastboy..."

Cyborg face was shocked. "It cant be... the Beast... how?"

"Cyborg, I thought you gave him an antidote for those chemicals that caused this to happen to him!" Robin's face was grim. He remembered how difficult it was fighting his friend the last time he lost control.

"I did, Robin. I don't understand how this could happen!" He looked down at Jinx, who was cowering in Starfire's arms now, more like a scared child than a prisoner. "What did you H.I.V.E. freaks do to him?" He demanded angrily.

"I already told you, tin-man! W-we attacked them, and he ... changed ... " The usually arrogant young girl was trembling visibly now. "He tossed Mammoth and Gizmo around like they were toys! We can't fight that! We need to run!"

Robin took a deep breath, and spoke in a voice filled with resolve. "No, we can't. If he's out of control again, we have to stop him, before he hurts himself, or someone else." Reaching into a pouch on his belt, he removed a pair of handcuffs, which he used to bind Jinx's wrists together, and looked at Starfire. "Cyborg and I will take care of Beastboy. Hopefully we can bring him down without hurting him too much. I want you to keep an eye on to our... guest here, and make sure she doesn't try anything; we're going to need to ask her some questions later. Take her aside and stay out of the battle, if you can." _Besides, _he thought to himself, _I know how much you don't want to fight your friend, so I'm not going to make you. I know I sure don't want to do this..._

Cyborg approached Robin. "I think I have an idea. Did you bring any of those halothane sleep gas disks of yours?"

"Yeah, what do you have in mind?"

"Well, I'll try to pin him down,and keep him at a safe distance. Then you can dash in and hit him with the disks, and the gas will knock him out. That way, maybe we can all avoid getting hurt, including him."

"Do you think the halothane will put him under?"

The cybernetic teenager shrugged his massive shoulders. "Not a clue, Robin, but this is the best I can come up with on short notice. Got a better idea?" Cyborg could now hear the heavy footsteps of the beast, approaching rapidly. "Better hurry, he's getting close..."

Robin shook his head. "Sure don't. Let's give it a try, then."

The two boys took position a few yards down the tunnel from Starfire and Jinx, who were trying to remain inconspicuous in the shadows, while still being able to see what was happening. Cyborg stood in the middle of the passage, with his cannon arm ready and his body braced for combat. Robin, meanwhile, pulled the halothane disks from his utility belt and assumed a crouch, not unlike a sprinter, a few feet behind Cyborg, hoping the Beast might not notice him until he struck. He'd take every advantage he could get in this fight. Poised for battle, they waited for the beast to appear.

They didn't have to wait very long. They heard a growling sound from around the corner, and the Beast strode into the light, sniffing at the air. If anything, the huge creature seemed even more menacing than in their previous encounter. It walked with it's head held low, scanning the tunnel with its fierce eyes as if it were searching for prey. In one of its hands, it held a piece of one of the metal spider legs from Gizmo's backpack, the arachnoid appendage looking as though it had been torn away from the small villain in the course of battle. The Beast spotted Cyborg, and drew back its lips in a snarl, cruel fangs glinting in the light of the Titan's lamp.

Cyborg spoke, keeping his cannon trained on the creature that was formerly his friend, "BB? Listen, man... I hope you can hear me. I really don't want to hurt you. Please, dude, just stay cool... I want to help you!"

The huge green mammal showed no indication of comprehension. With a roar, it dropped the ruined robotic limb from its grasp and lunged towards Cyborg, leading with it's razor-sharp claws. Cyborg aimed his cannon and fired a warning blast across the creatures' muzzle. The Beast ceased its charge, eying the Titan warily.

Cyborg continued to fire his sonic weapon at the Beast, driving it further back down the passage. "Alright Robin, do it!"

The agile Titan dashed out from behind Cyborg, with his two halothane disks poised in his hand for throwing. "Cyborg, get back!" He yelled, as he threw the disks at the huge creature, praying that they would work.

The disks detonated, releasing their payload of greenish-yellow anesthetic gas. The Beast was engulfed by the thick cloud, hiding it from view. For a few seconds, the Titans could hear the sounds of coughing and gasping coming from the Beast, then silence.

Starfire, holding Jinx's upper arm in a firm grasp, emerged from the shadows. She peered intently into the lingering cloud, careful to keep her distance. "Was the gas effective? Is Beastboy incapacitated?"

Robin drew a small respirator from the seemingly never-ending stash of equipment on his belt. As he fitted it over his nose and mouth, he spoke to his team, "I want all you to stay back for the time being. I'll check things out."

With his respirator in place and his Bo staff in hand, Robin slowly stalked up to the now dissipating cloud of vapor. He looked down at the ground, and saw the Beast lying there, with its eyes closed and its chest rising and falling in time with its slow breathing rate. Robin lightly tapped on the huge creatures' torso with his staff. looking for a reaction , but the Beast remained still. With the halothane cloud now mostly dispersed, Robin took off his respirator and turned to speak to the others.

"It looks like it worked worked, everyone. Ok, Starfire, you take Jinx back to the Tower. Cyborg and I will – ughh!"

Suddenly, as Robin was speaking, the Beast sprang to its feet and attacked, striking him from behind with a huge green fist. The blow caught the Boy Wonder completely unaware, and launched him through the air past his stunned comrades. He landed in a heap several yards away from them, dazed from the impact. The Beast stalked forward, showing no effect from the halothane gas, its eyes burning with fury.

"Robin!" Starfire called in distress. Jinx let out a gasp and attempted to flee the scene of the battle, but Starfire maintained her viselike grip on the witch, not forgetting Robin's orders, even in her concerned state.

"Looks like BB was playing possum on us," Cyborg observed. "We'd better think of something, quick. I don't think he's very happy with us right now..."

As the Beast moved closer, it paused, as it seemed to notice Jinx for the first time. Then it let out an angered roar, and rushed toward Starfire and the young sorceress, whose presence seemed to enrage it even more.

"Starfire, watch out!" Cyborg ran forward, firing his sonic cannon at the Beast. The huge creature, however, seemed to anticipate his interference. Seemingly before Cyborg had even begun his attack, the Beast had leaped to the side, agilely avoiding the blue beams from the Titans' weapon. Then it counterattacked with a brutal shoulder tackle, ramming into Cyborg with locomotive-like force. The mechanically-enhanced hero was thrown backwards into the wall of the tunnel, leaving a huge divot in the crumbling bricks. The Titan crumpled the ground, knocked unconscious by the impact. Its opponent dealt with, the Beast turned its attention back to Jinx and Starfire.

By this time, Robin had managed to shake the worst of the cobwebs from his head, and was now coherent enough to notice the two teenage girls' peril. Hauling his self to his feet with the aid of his Bo staff, Robin ran to the aid of his teammate and her captive.

"Beastboy, don't do this! We don't want to hurt you!" The Beast showed no sign of understanding his words, and continued it's advance on them. Robin looked over at Starfire. "Looks like we can't hold anything back, this time. I'm sorry we have to do this, Starfire."

"I am sorry as well, Robin. I do not wish to harm our friend. But I suppose we have no choice." Summoning the energies contained within her body, she raised one of her hands, preparing to fire her starbolts at the Beast. The monstrous green creature continued to advance, not taking its eyes from Jinx.

Before either side could attack the other, however, a soft voice called out from behind the creature. "Beastboy?"

The Beast stopped and wheeled around to look at the speaker, momentarily forgetting its foes. The boundless rage on its face seemed to fade as Raven stepped into view. The dark Titan had her hood down, which revealed several bruises and an ugly-looking abrasion on her left temple, which oozed a thin rivulet of blood down the side of her face. She walked unsteadily, using one hand on the wall to support herself as she slowly made her way toward the combatants.

Her eyes remained focused on the Beast. "Beastboy, I know you can hear me. It's alright, Beastboy, you don't need to fight anymore." Her voice was quiet and calm, as if she were attempting to soothe her out-of-control comrade. She continued to approach the huge animal.

Cyborg, finally regaining his senses after being stunned in the fight against the Beast, rose to his feet and saw Raven walking closer to the Beast. Distressed, he activated his sonic cannon and prepared to defend her.

"Raven, watch out! He's gone crazy again! Move back so we can-"

"No, Cyborg," Raven responded in her monotone voice, "He isn't crazy." With her empathic senses, she could feel the storm of emotions that emanated from the Beast. "He's... confused, and angry, and afraid. If you attack him, It's only going to make things worse. Violence isn't going to help Beastboy." she continued to look at the creature, which seemed to be completely mesmerized by her presence. "Put away your weapons, everyone.. We need to try to calm him down."

As her friends complied with her request, Raven considered what she could do to help Beastboy. As long as he was in this confused mental state, he'd never be able to recognize them, much less be able to change back to his true form. What he needed was peace of mind. The beginnings of an idea began to form in her brain.

"Robin, I'm going to try something... I need you and the others to remain quiet and no matter what, don't disturb either of us."

"What are you going to do, Raven?" Robin asked.

"Do you remember when I linked with your mind, when you were having those visions of Slade?" When Robin nodded, she continued. "I'm going to attempt something similar here. I'm going to try to reach Beastboy and bring the Beast under control. The danger is that this linking will be a little more... complete than what I did with you. If ether of us is distracted, both of our minds could be permanently damaged."

"I understand. You heard her everyone, let's all remain calm, and hope this works."

Starfire looked at her with obvious concern. "Raven, are you certain that he will not try to harm you? After all, this is not the Beastboy that we know..."

"Granted, that's true." she responded. "But when this happened last time, with Adonis, he didn't hurt me then. So I don't think that he will now. He seems to recognize me, for some reason."

"I hope that you are correct, Raven. Please be careful!"

Taking a deep breath to help focus her thoughts, Raven stepped closer to the huge Beast, looking directly into its eyes. The creature seemed to show no signs of aggression or fear at her approach. It's gaze was more... curious than anything else.

Keeping her eyes locked on the Beast's, she cast her mind out attempting to establish a link with consciousness of her friend. As she made contact with the creatures' mind, she was flooded with a wave of images, emotions and feelings. Raven remembered her only previous conversation with Beastboy about the nature of his bestial self, in which he had described it as a "primal" part of his nature. Raven found that description to be quite accurate as it applied to the creatures' thought. She was bombarded with images of various people and events. Some were familiar to her, such as the former Titan Terra. Most, however, she didn't know; she could only assume that they were important people from Beastboy's past, before his time with the Teen Titans. Raven felt the emotions that were associated with the faces of these strangers; mostly loneliness, anger, and grief.

There was no seeming order or reason to the Beasts' mental processes; it was pure chaos The sudden inrush of disorganized thought threatened to overwhelm Raven's own mind. Were it not for the years of rigorous mental conditioning that she had subjected herself to, in order to keep hold of her humanity in the face of the demonic evil within her own soul, she would have been lost. And in that moment, she understood the nature of Beastboy's plight. It was as though the human part of the shapeshifting Titan's mind had been lost within the swirling maelstrom of emotions that were in the Beasts' consciousness. What he needed was a beacon to guide him through the storm.

Raven mentally called out, hoping that the changeling would pick up her thoughts.

_'Beastboy? Beastboy, can you hear me? Beastboy, if you are there I need you to answer me...' _

There was no response. It was as though her words were swept away by the raging images and feelings within the mind of the Beast. Raven considered this; the Beast showed little understanding of speech... perhaps she would have better results with images instead of words.

Reaching back into her memories, she searched for instances when she and Beastboy had interacted. She had memories of the young Titan's annoying practical jokes, which irritated her to no end; there where also memories of their fights against various villains, which she quickly discarded. The last thing the Beast needed was memories of combat. Then she found what she was looking for... the fondly remembered yet seldom discussed moments when she and Beastboy had been closest. Memories of his many attempts to make her laugh, which on more than a few occasions, _almost_ worked. Memories of the time after her deception at the hands of the dragon Malchior, when Beastboy came to her, to soothe her loneliness and help heal her shattered heart. And memories of the night after their first experience with the Beast, when she had gone to him to provide comfort, reassurance, and to help him face his fear of what lay inside him.

She cast these treasured images into the swirling vortex of the Beast's mind, hoping they could lead her friend back to her.

Her hope was not in vain. As she watched into the mind of the Beast, its raging anger and confusion slipped away. Gradually, as the creature calmed, Raven could sense the consciousness of Beastboy. The young Titan's mind seemed to be in a state of deep sleep, probably due to all the energy he expended during his time in his beast form. If their past experience with the Beast held true, Beastboy would have little, if any memory of his experiences as the Beast.

Her work done, Raven returned her mind to her own body. As she regained her normal senses, she saw Beastboy, now back in his natural form, laying on the ground, in an almost comatose slumber. She slumped down next to him, exhausted from the effort of bringing him back.

As Raven collapsed, her friends rushed up to her.

"Raven, please say that you are unharmed!" Starfire cried out, the emotional girl in obvious distress, still dragging a rather confused looking Jinx around by the arm.

"It's alright, Starfire," Raven replied, "I'm just tired, that's all. Linking with Beastboy's mind took a lot out of me. All I need is a little rest, and some meditation."

"What about BB?" Cyborg asked. "He just kinda stood there, all zoned out like, while you two were doing... whatever it was you were doing. Then he changed back to normal, and just passed out."

"He's probably just exhausted. His conscious mind was asleep when I finally reached him, so don't expect him to remember much when he wakes up." Raven looked over at Robin. "I have enough strength left to teleport back to the Tower. I can take Beastboy back with me."

"Do you think you can take Cyborg and Jinx as well?" He asked. When nodded, he continued. "Then take them back with you, too. Cyborg, put Jinx in one of the cells in Tower. Once we're done questioning her about all this, we can turn her over to the police."

Cyborg nodded. "Got it. And I'll take BB to the medical lab, and run a few tests. Maybe we can figure out why this happened to him."

"Ok." Robin then turned his attention to Jinx. "Alright, what did you three do with the money you took?"

Jinx looked away, reluctant to rat on her partners-in-crime. "Umm... I don't know what the guys did with it. They didn't tell me."

Cyborg sighed. "You always were a crummy liar."

"What are you talking about?"

"Jinx, in the little bit of time I spent undercover at the H.I.V.E academy. I picked up a lot of little tidbits of info about each of you. One thing that I noticed about you is that you can't tell a convincing lie to save your hide. I mean, you could never even cover for us when we used to cut class. Besides, if that wasn't enough..." Cyborg pointed to the high-tech auditory sensors mounted on the mechanical portion of his head, "...voice-stress analyzers. I _know_ you're not telling the truth."

Jinx continued to refuse to look him in the eye, and said nothing.

Cyborg went on. "Look, Mammoth and Gizmo ditched you. They probably figured that BB would be so busy mauling you that they could get away easy. The way I see it, you don't owe them a thing. Besides, if you cooperate now, things might go a little easier for you later on."

Jinx looked down at the ground. Then she sighed and looked up at Cyborg. "They hid the money about a hundred yards down the tunnel, underneath a pile of rubble. Look on the left side, as you go down."

"I shall investigate," Starfire said and flew into the darkness.

"Thanks, Jinx. You did the right thing." Cyborg told the sorceress.

"Yeah, whatever..." Jinx looked away again, and said nothing more.

Moments later, Starfire floated back into the light, carrying the large bag of cash that Mammoth had taken from the Gotham Bank and Trust earlier that day. "I have recovered the stolen currency. Robin, are we going to return it to the place of banking now?"

"Thats right, Starfire. You can return the money while I give a statement to the authorities. They'll want to know what happened to the other H.I.V.E. members, and why we're holding Jinx in our custody. Then I'll grab the R-Cycle and we'll meet the others back at the Tower."

"Very well." Starfire thought a moment. "Wait! What about the T-car? I am certain that Cyborg does not wish to leave it at the crime scene when he teleports with Raven, and I have not yet earned the 'license for driving'..."

Cyborg smiled. "Way ahead of ya, Star. I gave the A.I. in the T-car's on-board computer instructions to drive the car back to the Tower a few minutes ago. It should almost be home by now."

Raven rose to her feet. "We should be going, Cyborg. Bring Jinx over here, next to Beastboy and I."

As Cyborg and Jinx joined Raven and the still unconscious Beastboy, Robin spoke to them. "We should be back at Titans' tower within an hour or so. Then we can start trying to get to the bottom of all this." He looked down at Beastboy. "If he wakes up, keep a close eye on him. Until we can figure out why he went berserk, we can't be sure if it could happen again, and I had enough of chasing him around the city last time."

"I gotcha." Cyborg looked over at Raven. "We're ready when you are."

The half-demon girl spread her arms wide and floated slightly off the ground as she recited the familiar mantra that focused her magical energies.

"_Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!"_

As Raven finished her incantation, the four teenagers were engulfed within a nimbus of black energy, which then took a shape that resembled a great, black bird, and carried them back to the Tower.

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

Authors' notes:

...And so the second chapter ends. Somewhat shorter than the first, I know, but it just took longer than I anticipated to get the Titans out of the sewer, and I figured this was a good place for a break. Expect the next chapter to be somewhat "quieter," (at least, that's how it looks at the moment,) as the team attempts to find the cause of BB's loss of control.

I must say, I was really gratified at all the feedback that I received for the first chapter. Thank you all and please, feel free to keep reviewing. The more feedback I get, the better the writer I can become, and the better the story I can give you. I sincerely hope that you've all enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next. Until then, take care.

Regards,

The Doctor

30 July 2005


	3. A Matter of Trust

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

AUTHORS NOTE:

There seems to be a rumor going about that is punishing authors that respond to their reviewers within their stories. I don't know if this (idiotic) rule change is true, but I am not taking chances. Therefore, I sent those of you who signed your reviews with e-mail addresses a personal response, in lieu of the typical response at the beginning of the chapter. I greatly enjoy interacting with my readership, and intend to continue to do so. If you guys like this, let me know. I am always anxious to hear your thoughts. Also to those of you who didn't have e-mail addresses posted, (Kayasuri-n, Dannyspudge, The Last, yoyo, Neko, Corvus, and anyone else I'm forgetting...) I'd just like you all to know that I enjoyed your reviews, and I hope to continue to hear from you.

Oh, and FantasyObsessed? The Teletubbies scare me. (_shudder) _

CHAPTER 3: A MATTER OF TRUST

Within moments, the blackness that surrounded the four teenagers dispersed, and they found themselves standing in the clean, antiseptic environs of the Titans Tower Medical Area. Cyborg, being in his element, took charge of the situation.

"Alright, Raven. I want you to take Jinx and put her in one of the holding cells until Robin and Starfire get back. Oh, be sure to keep her hands bound. Her magic is based on hand gesture. She can't use her powers if she can't move her hands. Then you can come back here and give me a hand with BB, if you feel up to it." Being out of the darkened sewer, Cyborg got his first good look at the wound on the side of Raven's head, suffered at the hands of Mammoth. "I can have a look at that cut on your face, too."

"It's fine, Cyborg," Raven replied, "I'm a quick healer. Just focus on Beastboy."

The blue-cloaked girl turned and led the sorceress away.

Cyborg focused his attention to the prone form of Beastboy, who still showed no signs of consciousness. The large Titan easily lifted his smaller teammates' sight form and carried him over to the examination bed.. Gently laying him down, Cyborg began attaching numerous electrodes to the shapeshifter's body; sensors on his forehead and temples monitored brainwave activity, while others placed on his chest and wrists monitored heart rate and blood pressure, respectively. As Cyborg lifted one of Beastboy's eyelids, in order to check his pupils, Raven re-entered the room.

"Have you been able to figure anything out?" she asked.

"So far, nothin'. I've just got started though." Pausing a moment, he changed the subject. "How's Jinx doing? Did she say anything to you on the way to her cell?"

"No. Not a word."

"She seemed really spooked. Just what did go on down there, Raven? What did you see?"

Raven shook her head. "I'm afraid I can't really say very much. We tried to contact Robin, Mammoth clubbed me over the head, and that was it for me. Whatever happened to Beastboy, I was out cold when it happened." She put her fingertips to her forehead, nursing a screaming headache. "When I came to, I could sense Beastboy's emotions back up the tunnel, so I got up, stumbled back up the sewer, and you saw the rest."

"Yeah, we sure did. Not that we really understood any of it." Cyborg thought a moment. "You went into BB's head, right? Did you see anything that might be useful?"

"It was... confusing. Everything was moving around in his head so fast, I couldn't really make sense of anything. I just got impressions of what he was feeling. A lot of anger and sadness, mostly."

"Anger and sadness... we are still talkin' about BB, Right? He's usually so silly."

Raven's look was pensive. "I don't know for certain, but I think there's more going on with Beastboy than he's told us. Did you ever notice how much he dislikes talking about his past?"

Cyborg shrugged. "Well, none of us talk about our pasts, much. We probably all have something to hide."

"I didn't get the impression that he has anything in his past to hide from us, exactly. I think that he doesn't want to remember it, himself." Raven looked down at the sleeping face of her green comrade. "I'm starting to wonder if much of Beastboy's humor is a way to defend himself from some things in his past that have hurt him. " The dark empath continued to look down at Beastboy, as if she were trying to penetrate the secrets locked in the changeling's mind then and there. Then she looked up at Cyborg, who had turned his attention to the array of screens that displayed Beastboy's condition. "How is he, physically?"

Cyborg looked somewhat puzzled. "It's strange... his body has shut down, as if he were in deep sleep, yet his brainwave activity is off the scale. Some of these beta-wave readings are a little contradictory. But then, I can't say that I really understand BB's biology very well. There really isn't anyone else remotely like him in the whole world, after all. The serum I gave him last year should have counteracted the effects of those chemicals he was exposed to during the fight with Adonis, but then, without really knowing how his powers work in the first place..." Cyborg considered the matter briefly, and said, "I think we're gonna need to ask Beastboy about how he got his powers when he wakes up. I don't like the idea of invading his privacy, but I think it's the only way to get to the bottom of this.

"Hey Raven, why don't you go lie down for a while? You've had a pretty full day, after all, and you'd mentioned not sleeping well this morning, right?"

"Aren't you going to need a hand with Beastboy? I should stay and help you." Raven momentarily looked down at Beastboy, the look of obvious concern in her eyes not escaping Cyborg's notice. He smiled at her.

"It's ok, Rae. I'll be sure to wake you if his condition changes. When Robin and Starfire get back,Rob's going to interrogate Jinx, and try to find out exactly what happened. You should get some rest, so you can be ready for whatever comes up."

"Alright. Call me if anything happens." Raven turned and departed for her room.

* * *

"**Gar? Gar? Stay close to Mommy while you play, ok honey?"**

"**I will!" The young boy replied.**

**It was a beautiful day. The afternoon sun shown brightly, bathing the verdant jungle with its heat. In a clearing within the rain forest, a small building, scarcely more than a hut, stood, with the words "UPPER LAMUMBA RESEARCH CENTER" displayed on a sign over the door. In the yard outside the door, a chestnut-haired woman was peering under the raised hood of a battered Jeep, in the process of changing the oil.** **Several yards away, the young boy that the woman had been talking to played in the tall grass at the verge of the forest.**

**A rustling in the nearby underbrush drew the boy's attention away from his game. With his natural curiosity aroused, the lad made his way over toward the source of the disturbance, in a thicket of foliage.**

**As the boy drew near the bushes, a small simian form emerged, alerted to the approach of an intruder. As the child drew closer, the monkey raised the hackles of its green-furred back, and lifted its tail into the air. If the display was intended to be threatening, the boy was oblivious to the warning as he reached out his tiny hand for the animal, fascinated by the unusual creature.**

"**A green monkey!" the child exclaimed with delight.**

**The boy had no chance to defend his self as the monkey shrieked and leaped from the bushes to attack the unwary child, sinking its small, sharp teeth into the unprotected flesh of the boy's right upper arm. Crying out loudly, the hapless lad fell to the ground, tears flowing uncontrollably.**

**Within moments, the traumatized child felt the presence of his mother by his side. She gently stroked one hand though his unruly blond hair as she attempted to examine the bleeding wound on his arm.**

"**Oh my God, Garfield! What happened to you?" The boy could see his mothers' eyes were wide with fright. "What did this to you, baby?"**

**Lost in his anguish,** **the child was unable to respond to the question, but a flicker of movement nearby drew his mothers' eye. As she looked up from her suffering son, she saw a green monkey fleeing the scene of the attack.**

"**A _green_ monkey? It can't be..." The woman paused as if she were thinking for a moment, then her face paled visibly as she seemed to realize something.**

"**...Sakutia!" Her voice was filled with dread as she spoke the strange word.**

**The boy felt himself being lifted into the comforting embrace of his mother as she carried him back to the small building in the center of the clearing, Just before he blacked out, he could hear his mother's voice crying out as she ran.**

"**Mark, Help me! Garfield's been hurt!"**

* * *

Raven struggled her way back to wakefulness, shaking off the last remnants of the strange dream. 

_Now that was bizarre. I don't think I've ever dreamed about being a little boy before. Felt kind of odd for a dream, too. Too much detail._

Despite her further attempts at slumber, Raven was restless. She found herself troubled by thoughts of the incident with Beastboy in the sewer. She certainly could relate to the green changeling's plight to a great degree. After all, she had spent the better part of her life struggling to control a dark inner portion of herself. The last thing that she would wish is for someone she cared about to have to endure the sorts of hardships that she had. And despite how it sometimes appeared, Raven did care about her fellow Titans very much; she was simply uncomfortable expressing it.

Still unable to sleep after several hours, the Dark Empath was now floating above her bed, seeking solace in meditation when her a knock at her door alerted her.

"Friend Raven? It is I, Starfire. Beastboy has just awakened, and Cyborg has said that you wished to be alerted when he regained consciousness. We are all gathering in the medical laboratory to check on his condition. Will you be joining us?"

"Just a moment, Starfire." Drifting down to the surface of her bed, Raven unfolded her legs from the lotus position she customarily assumed while in meditation. She rose and walked to the door, and pressed the switch to open it revealing Starfire waiting patiently outside. The young Tamaranean girl looked at Ravens' face rather critically.

"Raven, It still appears that you are quite tired from todays ordeal. Perhaps you should return to rest..."

"No, I'm ok Starfire. I want to help you guys find out what's wrong with Beastboy. Let's go."

The two girls headed down the hallway to the elevator that would carry them to the Medical Lab. After riding to the top floor of the tower,it was a short walk to the entrance to the infirmary. As the door opened, they saw Beastboy sitting upright on the medical bed, in the midst of an apparent argument with Cyborg

"Aw, c'mon, Cy! You have to know something! I mean, why can't you tell what's wrong with me?"

"I can't tell you what's wrong with you, because as far as I can tell, there's nothing wrong with you, _physically._"

"Nothing's wrong with me _physically_, huh?" Beastboy's voice held a hint of anger. "So you think I'm crazy, right? Is that it?"

"No man, you're overreacting!"

"Overreacting! You said I lost control and attacked you guys! That I was trying to kill those H.I.V.E. brats! How could I overreact to that!"

Raven could feel the shame and worry radiating from Beastboy like heat from a fire. He would need to be calmed down if they were to gain any useful information from him.

Starfire was upset by the conflict between her friends. "Beastboy, please do not be upset! I am sure that Cyborg will be able to discover what caused you to loose control in the sewer."

"You heard him Star... nothing's wrong with me. _Physically." _Beastboy seemed to notice Raven's presence for the first time. The defensive look in his eyes softened somewhat as he looked at her. He noticed the fading bruise on th side of her head. "Raven? Are you alright? Those H.I.V.E. punks didn't hurt you, did they?" He paused, then added in a small voice, "_I _didn't hurt you, did I?"

"I'm fine, Beastboy. Mammoth knocked me over the head. That's all." Raven replied in her usual monotone. With her empathic sensitivity, she had to work hard to keep herself under control, given the tense atmosphere in the room. She could feel BB's anxiety about what was happening to him, Starfires' sadness regarding Beastboy's distress, and Cyborg's worry about the health of his best friend. The tumult of emotion battered at Ravens' mind, but her defenses held firm. She'd had years of practice to strengthen them.

The doors to the Med Lab hissed open, and Robin walked into the room. The Boy Wonder's face was, as usual, a grim mask of control. Unlike Beastboy or Starfire, who broadcast their emotions like a beacon, Robin was usually rather difficult to read, even for Raven. Unless Starfire was concerned, that was.

"Beastboy, I'm glad to see you're awake. We need to talk."

The defensive look returned to Beastboy's visage. He remembered well how Robin had treated him during their last experience with the changeling's primal side. "What's there to talk about, Robin? Why don't you just take me to jail. That's what you really want to do, isn't it?"

"We just want to ask you a few questions, so that Cyborg will be able to treat you more. We're trying to help you."

"Yeah Robin, I really felt the love from you last time this happened."

Robin sighed, stung by his teammate's words. He had hoped that his behavior during the previous "incident" would not come up. "Listen, Beastboy. I know that I made mistakes the last time. I made a snap judgment, and I was wrong. You know that I never meant you any harm. We had thought you had hurt Raven..."

"That's the problem, Robin! That you could even think that I'd do _anything_ like that! Why can't you trust me?"

"Beastboy, I do trust you. We trust you. We just need to figure out why this happened to you. Why you lost control of yourself. Is there anything you can tell us about what happened?"

The look on Beastboys' face had shifted from defiance to defeat. "I don't understand it," He moaned. "I rememberer Raven being attacked by Mammoth. I was... angry. I thought that Raven was hurt really bad. I attacked Mammoth, but Gizmo got me with something. Whatever he hit me with, It hurt pretty bad. I think I blacked out, or something."

"Do you remember anything that happened while you were the Beast?" Robin asked.

The green Titan shook his head, not looking at his teammates. "No I- I don't remember anything... 'till I woke up here."

Cyborg spoke up. "BB, what we need to know is why you weren't able to control yourself when you were the Beast. I mean, you've taken that form voluntarily before, right? I remember seeing you as the Beast when we were defending Raven against those Fire-things that Trigon sent after her..."

Beastboy took a deep breath, still not looking at them. "I... Uh... actually don't remember much of that, Cy. I was really... hyped up, I guess. I was desperate to defend Raven, and I wanted to take the strongest form I could to keep her safe." He looked up at Raven, then looked away, flushing slightly. " All that mattered to me was protecting Raven. I'm not sure that I really had control then, either. Difference is, I don't think I lost my control then. I gave it up willingly."

Raven felt blood rushing to her face, both embarrassed and flattered by the boy's admission of concern for her. She never thought that anyone could care so much for her, that they would put themselves through something so trying.

Cyborg thought about Beastboy's statement a moment, and then spoke. "So what you're saying is that when you become that creature, you have no conscious control of yourself. What we have to figure out now is what makes that Beast so much different than all the other forms you take. Can you tell me something about your powers, like... how you got them in the first place?"

The shapeshifters' expression grew apprehensive at Cyborg's question. "I... umm... I really don't want to talk about it."

Robin pressed further. "Beastboy, this could be the key to bringing the Beast under control. You need to help us here. Tell us about your powers!"

"I can't! Please... I-I really don't want to talk about this right now. Please..." The young man was practically in tears, his hands trembling violently.

The other four Titans were momentarily silent, shocked at how upset their friend had become. It was Starfire who spoke at last.

"Perhaps we should allow Beastboy to rest for a while. No doubt this will be easier for all of us once he has had a chance to recover from all of the stressful things that he has experienced today."

Robin nodded, smiling inwardly at the alien girls' care for her teammate. "You're right, Starfire. Cyborg, is there any reason that Beastboy needs to stay in medical?"

"No, Robin. Like I said, he's fine physically - near as I can tell, at any rate."

"Alright, then. Beastboy, you can go back to your room and get some rest. We can talk about this more once you're feeling up to it"

"Thanks guys." Beastboy slid off of the bed and shuffled towards the door. Before he left, he paused and looked back at his friends.

"Listen, everyone. I'm really sorry about all of this. I don't understand why this is happening to me. You know that I don't want to hurt anyone-"

"We know, Beastboy." Robin replied. "We'll help you get through this. We promise."

Beastboy nodded silently and left the Medlab.

Robin looked back at his fellow Titans after Beastboy's departure. "What do you guys think?"

Cyborg was the first to speak. "I don't get why he's so scared to tell us about his powers. I mean, he was almost crying when we asked him about it. I've never seen him so messed up."

"I know. Raven, anything to add?"

She shook her head. "Not really. Clearly, his powers are linked to something traumatic from his childhood. We're going to have to be careful approaching him about it."

Starfire spoke next. "Robin, did you attempt to question Jinx?"

"Yeah. She didn't really have anything to add. She basically just repeated what she told us in the tunnel. I don't know if she knows anything that's going to help us with Beastboy.

"What about the bank robbery?" Cyborg asked. "That sort of thing's not exactly the H.I.V.E.s style."

"She said that they were hired by an anonymous client to pull the bank job. I couldn't get her to say much about that, either. We'll let her stew in her cell a while, then try again." He looked at his teammates. "I didn't want to say anything about her around Beastboy; remember, it was the H.I.V.E. he was attacking in the sewer earlier. I'm worried about how he might react if he knew she was in the tower, so I don't think any of us should mention Jinx around Beastboy for the time being, agreed?"

Cyborg nodded his assent. "Good thinking. But this still doesn't solve our main problem: How do we help BB?"

Starfires' expression was thoughtful as she spoke. "Perhaps It would be better if only one of us was to approach Beastboy to ask him about his past. It is possible that he would feel less threatened if he did not have all of us attempting to question him about matters that he is clearly reluctant to talk about."

Robin smiled at her. "Good thinking, Starfire! I think that after dinner might be the best time for you to go to him. That way, you could take him some food too. He's always in a better mood after eating."

"Oh! I was not suggesting that _I_ should be the one to talk to him. I am of the thought that perhaps ... Raven would be a better choice!" Starfire said brightly.

"Me?" Raven cocked an eyebrow at her alien comrade.

"Certainly!" The Red-head beamed back at her. "You are most definitely the perfect choice! You have the empathic ability to sense what Beastboy is feeling, so he will have difficulty concealing the truth from you. Also, you seemed to be able to calm his rage when we were in the sewer earlier today." Starfire continued to direct her sunniest smile at the stoic empath. "You are the only one who can do this!"

Raven narrowed her eyes at Starfire, but could find no logical fault to the Tamaraneans' reasoning. "Fine. I'll do it." She said reluctantly.

"Glorious!"

"Yeah, whatever." She drawled. "I'm going to my room to finish meditating. I'll meet you guys for dinner in hour or so." Raven turned and drifted out of the room.

Cyborg looked at Starfire, "That was good thinking, Star!"

Robin's voice was somewhat suspicious, however. "It sure was, but why do I get the feeling that you weren't telling Raven something?" Robin looked at her with slightly narrowed eyes.

Starfires' smile hadn't left her face. "All of the reasons I stated were true, but there are some others..."

"Such as?"

Starfire giggled slightly "Is it not obvious? Beastboy likes Raven."

Cyborg laughed a little. "Beastboy likes everybody."

"No, you misunderstand! Beastboy _likes _Raven." Starfire said with a certain emphasis.

As the meaning of the girls' words sank in, Cyborg and Robins faces took on matching expressions of incredulity. "You can't be serious!" Cyborg spoke in disbelief.

"Oh but I am!"

Recovering a little from his shock, Robin was curious "How did you figure this out?"

"It was simple, Robin. We Tamaraneans are very... in touch with our emotions. We pay very close attention to each others feelings, even when they are not spoken aloud. One has noticed how Beastboys' behavior would change in Ravens' presence for some time. How much more he smiles... how his eyes linger on her when she is not looking back at him... he even blushes on occasion..." She sighed wistfully, her eyes a little distant. "It is all so very sweet! One thinks that he has wanted to crush Raven for some time..."

Cyborg couldn't contain his laugh at the alien girls' flawed English. "You meant he _'had a crush on Raven,'_ Star." He smiled. "Heh, so the little grass stains' sweet on Rae, huh? Poor guy. It's too bad she doesn't feel the same way."

Starfires smile turned slightly mischievous. "Are you so certain, Cyborg?" She said with a gleam in her eye, as she turned and left the Medlab.

Robin simply stared after her. "Women..." He muttered under his breath.

* * *

After dinner, Raven went to see Beastboy. 

Carrying a covered food tray in one hand, Raven punched in the code on the keypad and entered Beastboy's room, which was in its customary state of disarray. Unwashed clothes littered the floor, intermingled with old magazines, candy wrappers and various other effluvia. Sitting upon the unmade bottom bunk of his bed (why one boy needed a two level bunk bed was anyone's guess,) Raven saw the green Titan, his normally expressive face blank and apathetic. His emerald eyes had none of their typical spark, looking glazed and dull as he stared at the floor.

"Beastboy?"

He looked up at her, and spoke in a quiet, tremulous voice, "Hi, Raven. Looks like you're all healed up."

She nodded slightly. "Yes, well, accelerated healing is one of the few good things about my... parentage. Anyway, the others just wanted me to check and see how you were doing. We're all very worried about you..." She looked around the room, a little nervously, unused to interacting with her teammate this way " I brought you some dinner. So... how are you feeling?"

Beastboy's voice was bitter. "Well I've certainly been better, that's for sure.." He noticed the apparent discomfort in her body language. "Look, Raven, if you don't want to be around me, I understand. I mean, I wouldn't blame you for being afraid of me," A look of sadness crossed his face, "_I'm_ afraid of me, right now."

"No Beastboy! It's not like that. It's just..." She groped for the words to express what she was feeling. "It's just that I'm not used to this. To _any _of this. To seeing you so upset, to trying to be... comforting. I've worked so hard to keep myself distant from others, that... I'm just not sure what to do, I guess."

Beastboy gazed at her, a little surprised. It was rare to see the normally stoic Raven so unsure of herself. Ever since the defeat of her father, the demon Trigon, Beastboy had noticed slight, subtle changes in her personality. She was still quite mysterious, intensely private, and easily annoyed by his ofttimes juvenile antics, but she also spent more time with him and the rest of the Titans, and took a more active role in their friendship. On a few instances when they were all enjoying each other's company, he had even noticed a ghost of a smile playing about her lips. Beastboy treasured those rare smiles, more than he'd ever said.

"It's ok, Raven. this whole thing is a little tough for all of us. It really means a lot that you came up here to see me, anyway. I was feeling a little lonely, to tell you the truth."

Raven looked at him very directly. "Then I should remind you of a time when I was feeling hurt and alone. Someone came to me and reminded me that I wasn't alone, no matter how I felt. I never forgot that."

Beastboy smiled, remembering the time after the incident with Malchior. "Yeah, I remember that too. I remember being a little scared of you, to be honest. You always hated it whenever I invaded your privacy. But you just seemed so sad... I couldn't let a friend hurt like that, if I could do anything about it."

"That pretty much sums up my feelings, at the moment." Raven paused, hesitant to bring up what she knew would probably be a painful subject. "Cyborg says that part of the reason he can't treat you properly is that he doesn't really understand your biology, or how your powers function. If we're going to help you, you're going to have to tell us about yourself."

Beastboy looked away from her, not anxious to remember the events of his childhood. "Like I said before, I don't want to talk about it..."

Ravens' voice grew more intense. "Listen, you were always pushing me to open up to you and the rest of the Titans. You were always trying to help me, even when I didn't want help. And you never hesitated keep trying to find out more about me, even when I made it clear that I didn't want you in my personal life. But after what happened with my father, it's perfectly clear to me that with the five of us living here together and fighting alongside each other, that we are a part of each other's personal lives, like it or not.

"If we are going to trust each other with our lives, then we have to _trust_ each other. Believe me, I know how frightening it can be, but that's the key to this; _Trust." _She sighed, then continued, "You've always given me grief about being mysterious, about closing myself off from everyone. But the fact is, you're no different. None of us really know anything about you. You hide yourself behind this clown mask you've taken to wearing, but the time has come to show us who you really are."

Beastboy just looked at her, astonished at this outpouring from the usually reserved girl.

Recovering from his surprise, Beastboy spoke haltingly.

"I... I guess that there's just a lot of things that I'm scared to tell anybody about. The things that went on when I was a kid... not exactly happy stuff. I don't like to remember it. And I really don't want others to know about it."

"Why?"

The boy sighed. "I guess... well, I don't know. I'm worried that people might not like me, if they knew about it."

Setting the food tray down on his cluttered desk, Raven slowly walked over and sat down next to Beastboy, and looked him in the eye. "In case you hadn't noticed, I'm something of an expert on childhood trauma. There's nothing you can say that will make me think anything bad about you." She continued to look at him.

"Trust me."

Beastboy found himself unable to look away from Ravens' amethyst eyes. He was almost positive that she could hear the heart pounding in his chest.

He summoned up all the courage he could muster, and spoke.

"All right then... You might want to get comfortable, this could take a bit."

* * *

On the outskirts of Jump City, Mammoth and Gizmo, the two remaining At-large H.I.V.E. members, had returned to the rundown, abandoned hotel building that was serving as a makeshift base of operations for the trio. After the nerve-racking ordeal of evading the numerous police patrols, to say nothing of their frightening encounter with the Teen Titans' resident shapeshifter, The two young criminal were not particularly looking forward to the task they were about to undertake: reporting the failure of their robbery attempt to their mysterious employer. 

In truth, they knew nothing about their patron. All communications were handled electronically, though the exchange of text messages, with their employer using the pseudonym "Gilgamesh." The ever-curious Gizmo had once attempted to ascertain the identity of the enigmatic person that they were working for by tracing the messages that were sent to them back to their source, using his considerable hacking talents. After six hours of tracing the messages back though various relay stations and false I.D.'s, spanning virtually all areas of the globe, the young electronics prodigy had simply given up in frustration.

Obviously, whoever this person was, they were extremely resourceful.

As the two sat in one of the decaying hotel buildings' rooms, waiting for a message to appear on computer terminal that Gizmo had set up, Mammoth looked at his diminutive partner-in-crime.

"It's your fault." He growled.

"What are you talking about, Pit-Sniffer? If you hadn't let that green freak get the drop on you, we would be sitting here with the money in hand, instead of sitting here, worrying about what this guy might be able to do to us when he finds out we screwed this up!"

"You said that that that stun-gun of yours would be able to put an elephant under! All it did was tick him off!"

"It should have put him out like a candle! I don't know why it didn'-"

A urgent beeping from the terminal alerted Gizmo that their "employer" had connected to their computer.

"Hang on a sec, Mammoth. He's here!"

A second later the first message appeared on-screen.

_GILGAMESH: What happened?_

This wasn't good. Apparently, "Gilgamesh" was already aware of their failure. Excuses were out of the question. Gizmo decided that this was a case where honesty was the best policy. He quickly typed a reply.

_GIZMO: There was a problem. The Titans. We lost the money and Jinx._

_GILGAMESH: What sort of problem? You have encountered the Titans before. You should have been prepared._

_GIZMO: It was different this time. That green shape-shifting Titan did something we've never seen before. We think_ _he might have got Jinx.._

_GILGAMSEH: Show me._

Gizmo knew what "Gilgamesh" wanted to see. Not long ago, the childlike criminal had begun recording the crimes that he and his comrades perpetrated using a small digital camera attached to his person. Slipping a small Flash-RAM card into a slot on the terminal, Gizmo sent the recording of their encounter with the Beast to "Gilgamesh."

At the other end of the connection, the mysterious mastermind sat in a darkened chamber, watching the footage of Beastboys' rampage in his bestial form with growing interest. The loss of the profits from the bank robbery was annoying, but a minor setback at worst; He had numerous sources of income that would provide the money he needed to set his schemes in motion.

Besides, the loss of a relatively small amount of cash was a small price to pay for the intriguing information he was seeing at the moment. He had originally planned for Gizmo and Mammoth to become the victims of an unfortunate "accident," as punishment for their failure, but perhaps that was too hasty. They may still be able to serve a purpose, after all.

As he continued to watch the recording of the Beast, he could practically hear the gears turning in his head as the beginnings of a plan began to take shape in his mind.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Authors Notes:

First off, my apologies for the longer than usual update time. This chapter was a royal pain to write. It took me some time to find a direction for this chapter (I'm writing this story a chapter at a time... I'm not going to lie to you and pretend that I have some kind of grand plan for all of this.)

As you can tell, I'm setting up some exposition in the next chapter, regarding Beastboys' past. I thought it'd be a good idea to fill those of you in who might not be totally familiar with BB's comic backstory, as it informs quite a few things that I'm planning to do at this point. I had originally planned to detail Beastboy's past in this chapter, but it was just going on a little too long (Frankly, I'm a little worried that this chapter is too dialog-heavy and boring, as it is.) So I'm holding off on that till the next chapter. At this point, I'm also planning to bring Jinx back into the picture (she was also supposed to show up this chapter, but got pushed back.)

As always, I'm grateful to everyone who has read and reviewed this story. All feedback is eagerly accepted, so feel free to review. I'd also like to give special thanks to Regrem Eruterc, who gave me feedback on a few tough spots, and to the incomparable Vixxelinn, who was kind enough to Beta-read for me.

I hope everyone is enjoying my work, and hope to see you all at chapter four!

Regards,

The Doctor

21 August 2005


	4. Rememberance of Things Past

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

AKNOWLEGEMENTS:

Once again, I'd like to thank all of you who reviewed. I tried to E-mail as many of you as I could. To those of you that I couldn't, I'd like to express my thanks to you all. Your reviews always make me happy.

I'd also like to thank Vixxelinn, my beta reader, for all of her assistance. In addition to helping me correct my mistakes, she's always managed to lift my spirits, when I was down.

And I'd also like to thank my fellow fanfic author CalliopeMused for providing inspiration, support, and guidance during my work. I am in her debt. And if any of you, gentle readers, are yet to partake of her own fine work, I encourage you to do so right away.

No, wait, come back! I can't follow her act. Better read mine first, and save the best for last.

* * *

CHAPTER 4: REMEMBERANCE OF THINGS PAST

Beastboy looked at the floor at Raven's feet for a moment, then brought his eyes back up to meet hers as he began to speak.

"My name, my 'real' name, is Garfield Logan. My parents were scientists. Dad was a geneticist, and mom was a... uhh..." He paused a moment, brow furrowing as he tried to remember. "...oh! She was a biochemist, that's right. When I was six years old, they took me with them on a research expedition to central Africa. You ever heard of the Human Genome Project?" He asked.

Raven nodded affirmatively. "Yes, that's the project that is trying to map out the entire genetic code of the human species. To find out what every gene in the body is responsible for, right?"

"That's it. Well, my folks were a part of that. They were trying to cross-reference human DNA with chimpanzees, 'cause they're our closest relatives, in the animal kingdom.

"So, I was a toddler, growing up in the jungles of Africa." Beastboy's eyes grew a little distant, and he smiled slightly. "Gotta tell ya, it was fun. Didn't have to go to school, because my parents could teach me anything. My folks were friends with the local native tribal leader, King Tawaba. I used to hang with the kids in his village when he would tell stories about the legends of his people. That was fun. And, when I wasn't playing with the village kids, I played with the animals." His smile faded, and he closed his eyes. "That's how it all started..." He paused and lowered his head, clearly reluctant to continue.

"Go on." Raven pressed him, "What happened?"

The boy raised his head, and continued. "I was playing out in the yard in front of the little building my mom and dad used as their lab. I heard a noise in the bushes, and went over to take a look. It was a monkey. A green one."

Raven hoped her face didn't betray her emotions. She already knew where this part of the story was going.

"I was pretty comfortable with the animals, and most were pretty friendly, but this one was different. I had never seen a monkey with green fur before, and I was curious, so I tried to touch it. And it bit me. Right..." The young man paused a moment, and rolled up his sleeve, exposing one of his wiry arms. "...Here." He pointed to a spot on his right bicep.

Raven looked at the area he indicated, There was a small round scar, an area where his skin was a pale, pea-soup green, rather than the darker olive of the rest of his body. She could still see the tiny marks left by the teeth of the enraged primate.

Raven's mind reeled.

_My dream... that's where the boy from my dream was bitten... what did his mother call him... 'Gar,' wasn't it? As in 'Garfield?' _

_Could this mean... I've been seeing into Beastboy's mind? _

_Why? What is going on with me?_

Oblivious to Raven's tumultuous thoughts, Beastboy rolled his sleeve back down and continued. "Anyway, my mother heard me scream, and rushed over, and found me laying on the ground hurting, Things start to get a little hazy for me at this point, but evidentially she saw the monkey that attacked me. I remember her saying a word. A strange word. 'Sakutia.' The way she said it, she sounded... scared. And I'd find out why." The Titan's face was grim, as he recalled the painful experiences.

Raven roused herself from the reverie she had been in since Beastboy had shown her his scar. "W-what's Sakutia? I'm not familiar with the word."

"It's a disease," he answered, "A rare tropical disease. Roughly translated, 'Sakutia' means 'Green Fever' in the language of the locals of that part of Africa. It's called that because one of the main symptoms is the skin and hair turning green, in a creature that has the virus. And I was infected with it, when the monkey bit me." He paused. "Sakutia is always fatal. In humans, that is."

Raven's curiosity was piqued. "Well, I know I'm asking the obvious here, but, how did you survive?"

"Ahh, that's the thing." Beastboy replied, " Notice that I said it was always fatal 'In humans.' My father was a geneticist, remember?" Beastboy paused for a moment, and his eyes widened, as if he suddenly remembered something. "Hey, hang on a sec." Beastboy stopped his story, and rose from his bed, where the two had been sitting while he told his tale. Picking his way around the clutter that dominated the floor of his room, he made his way over to his dresser, and opened the top drawer. Reaching back into its furthest recesses, he retrieved something, and closed the drawer, before making his way back over to Raven, and sitting down next to her again. Raven looked at the object he had retrieved from his dresser. It was a small book, bound in plain black leather, without a title on the cover or spine. He handed the book to her, saying, "You should take this, for Cyborg to look at. I really can't explain the science behind what my father did to me, but there are pretty detailed notes about it in there."

Raven opened the cover and looked at the flyleaf.

PROFESSIONAL JOURNAL

DR. MARK LOGAN, PhD

Raven looked back up at him. "Dr. Mark Logan... this was your father's journal, then?"

"That's right. The treatment was his idea."

"Treatment? For the disease, you mean?"

"Yep. Dad knew that many animals could survive being infected, like the monkey that bit me. Something to do with differences in animal and human DNA. So, he gave me some sort of... serum, or something that altered my genes. But my skin stayed green, even though the disease was cured."

"And I'm guessing the treatment is what led you having the ability to change into animals, right?"

"You guessed it, Rae." Beastboy affirmed. "It was a few weeks later, when I changed for the first time. To save my mom.

"Some of the plants that grew in the area around where we lived could be used to make medicines. My mom liked to collect them, to make medicine for the people in Tawaba's village. One day while she was gathering these plants, I heard her call out, and ran over to see what was happening. She had disturbed a snake. It was a Black Mamba. They're one of the most dangerous snakes in the world. I saw the snake rear up; it was about to bite her.

"All I could think about was a mongoose, because the mongoose is a natural predator of snakes. I was really into animals as a kid, see, and my mom and dad taught me all about them. Anyhow, as soon as the image of the mongoose appeared in my head, I felt something happening to me. To my body."

"So, I'm guessing that you turned into a mongoose and fought the snake off, and protected your mother."

"Yep." Beastboy then grimaced. "Actually, I kinda, uhh... killed the snake. And ate it."

Raven just stared at him in shock.

"You gotta understand, when I become an animal, it's not just skin deep. My mind becomes the mind of that animal, too. I get the instincts of whatever critter I turn into. And mongooses eat snakes." The changeling smirked wryly. "It was at about this time I started considering vegetarianism."

Raven thought about what Beastboy had said. "So, when you change, your mind changes, too... That would explain why it was so hard to get through to you when you were the Beast," She mused. "So how are you able to change back?"

"That's the hard part." He replied. "The first time, I couldn't. I wasn't even aware that I was really a human anymore. I was pretty much just a mongoose. Mom and dad were pretty freaked, as you could imagine. Finally, mom gave me an anesthetic, and as soon as I was knocked out, I changed back." Beastboy chuckled a little. "The next few days were pretty miserable for me. My parents poked and prodded me, running all kinds of tests, and the results are all recorded in that little black book you've got there. It took me a little while, but eventually I learned how to keep a grip on my human mind, while changed into an animal. That's how I'm able to change back, by holding on to a little bit of my human self."

Raven mulled his story over. "It makes sense. Robin said that last time you became that Beast, you shifted back when they knocked you unconscious. And when I touched your mind while you were the Beast, it was like the human part of you was... lost. That's probably why you couldn't change back. So, then, all you need to do normally is concentrate on an animal, and you change?"

"Uh-huh. But it took me years to master changing. At first, I could only morph into smaller animals. Like I said, I can't explain it. I'm not exactly a chip off the ol' block when it comes to the science stuff," He said self-deprecatingly, "So that's why I'll let you guys look at that." He paused and glanced at the journal in Raven's hands. "Umm... the only thing I ask is that you try to make sure I get it back." His voice was quiet, and sad.

"Sure." Raven replied cautiously. There was something in the shapeshifter's eyes that told her to tread cautiously. Clearly, there were some issues ahead.

"So, the treatment your parents gave you is what causes your powers. I've... never heard you talk about them before..." She said. Actually, none of the Titans did. Her own issues with her father had unavoidably come to light recently. But as a rule, the Titans assiduously avoided the issue of each other's pasts.

Raven decided to probe a little further, hoping that the solution to her friends' problem was within her grasp.

"Is there any way that we could get in touch with them? Perhaps they could help us with ..."

"They're gone." His voice was barely audible.

As soon as the words left Beastboy's mouth, Raven's empathic sense was assaulted by near-overwhelming waves of despair, rage and guilt.

She had never experienced anything like this before, especially not from the usually happy-go-lucky Beastboy. And yet, his face simply settled into an expression of blank apathy, completely devoid of any feeling.

"Beastboy, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright."

There were a few moments of uncomfortable silence between them, and then Beastboy spoke .

"Listen, I'm starting to feel tired. I think I'm gonna turn in."

"Are you sure? I'd be... willing to stay and talk, if you'd like."

"That's alright, Rae. I'm feeling better already, thanks."

Raven didn't need to be an empath to know he was lying.

"Alright. Don't forget about your food." She pointed to the covered food tray she had brought up with her "Umm, it's something Starfire made, so, uh, you might want to use caution."

"Eat at my own risk. Gotcha." Beastboy chuckled a little, but his eyes showed no mirth.

Lacking anything else to say, Raven turned and made her way to the door of Beastboy's room. Before leaving, she paused and turned back to him.

"Beastboy, I just want you to know that I'm... honored that you shared what you did with me. I know how hard it can be to talk about the past. We're all going to do our best to get to the bottom of this."

Beastboy glanced up at her momentarily, then averted his eyes again, as though they might betray him. "Thank you. That means a lot."

With Beastboy clearly no longer in the mood to talk, Raven left his room and made her way down the hall, trying to sort out her thoughts as she walked.

_Well, Beastboy's father's diary should cover the medical end of things, at least. That should make Cyborg happy. I know that it bothered him to not be able to help his best friend more._

_But, I'm not so sure that Beastboy's problems are totally biological in nature. Something is still bothering him, especially where his parents are concerned. He said they were... 'Gone.' I assume he meant dead, but why did I sense so much shame coming from him, when I asked about them? What is he feeling guilty for? What isn't he telling me? And why has he concealed this so long? _

I_'ve never sensed anything like this from him in the past. Granted, I never really paid that much attention to him in the past... The last time the Beast appeared, Beastboy was under a great deal of emotional stress... Could these issues with his past be pushing him over the brink now? _

_And on top of all that, I still want to know why I've been having visions of his past in my dreams. But at least with that, I may have a lead..._

_But first, I should gather the others and tell them what I've found out about Beastboy... _

With that, Raven made her way to the lower levels of the tower, to find the rest of her teammates.

* * *

As the setting sun made it's way past the western horizon, the Titans, sans Beastboy, gathered in the living room of Titan's Tower. 

"You'd said you managed to get some information from Beastboy?" Robin asked.

Raven nodded. "Yes, I managed to get him to talk to me a little. He explained to me where his powers came from."

She went on to give the three an abridged version of Beastboy's childhood story. Raven tried to stay with the pertinent facts, and kept the details to a bare minimum out of respect for Beastboy's privacy. She then presented the journal to Cyborg.

"Beastboy said that this was his father's journal, where he kept all his data. He said it should be able to explain the science behind his powers, better than he could himself."

"Here, let me see that," said Cyborg, his curiosity piqued. He took the small volume from her and began to flip through the pages rapidly, glancing at several every second. Despite this, Cyborg's memory retained every word and diagram contained within the scientific text. Such were the advantages of having a computer-enhanced brain.

"Raven, did friend Beastboy still sound upset when you conversed with him?" Starfire asked with concern on her features. The alien girl was always very open about expressing her feelings for her fellow Titans. She was clearly hoping that her idea to get Beastboy to open up had been successful.

"He's still depressed." Replied Raven. "I managed to get him talking, but he's still a long way from his old self."

"Finished!" Cyborg announced, closing the journal. He paused for a second, as if reviewing all the information he had just absorbed. Then he laughed a little."Wow. That was... interesting stuff, to say the least."

Robin spoke. "Was there anything in there that will help us?'

"Oh yeah, it'll just take me a while to make heads or tails of it. Genetics isn't really my line and this stuff..." He looked down at the book , shaking his head a little. "If Dr. Logan had of published this stuff in the scientific community, they would have pretty much just handed him the Nobel Prize. I've never worked with anything like this before, but I should be able to use this info to figure out why this happened. It'll just take a little time."

Robin thought for a moment. "It might go faster if we could consult with the author. Beastboy didn't mention if there was anyway to get in touch with his father, did he?"

Raven shook her head. "He said his parents were... gone. He didn't want to talk about it."

"I see." The Titan's leader sighed. He understood all to well what it meant to lose parents.

Swallowing his own painful memories, he continued. "Let me know as soon as you have something, then. We're a Titan down at the moment, and that places us in a vulnerable position. I'd like to have us back at full strength as soon as possible." Robin didn't mean to sound cold or unfeeling about his teammate's plight to the others; he just took it upon himself, as leader, to try to remain pragmatic. Feelings had to take a backseat, sometimes, when one was a leader. "In any case, there's not much more we can do today, so everyone should probably just turn in. Tomorrow we can try questioning Jinx once more, before we turn her over to the authorities. I'm still a little puzzled by the whole bank robbery thing."

Cyborg nodded. "Yeah, it's not the sort of thing the H.I.V.E. was into, at least not while I was there."

Raven rose from her seat. "I think I'll check on Beastboy, and then head to bed, myself." She held her hand out to Cyborg. "I think he's going to want that back."

"What? Oh, the book you mean... sure, I've memorized it, anyway. Here you go." Cyborg handed the journal back to the dark Titan. He then smirked at her. "Tell _Garfield_ I hope he feels better."

"Garfield?" Starfire asked in perplexity.

Robin seemed equally puzzled. "Is that..."

"Yup! Beastboy's real name is Garfield Mark Logan. Heh, isn't that a riot? Little grass stain's gonna regret letting me read that!"

Raven could only roll her eyes as she took the book from Cyborg and headed to the elevator.

* * *

Raven paused outside Beastboy's door, and knocked softly on its smooth metal surface. 

"Beastboy? It's me, Raven. Are you up? I'm just checking on you before I turn in."

There was no response.

_Perhaps he is just asleep. But, given the circumstances, I guess I should be sure..._

Raven cast her empathic sense forth, attempting to pick up on the shapeshifter's mental state.

He was asleep, that much was certain; she could feel the haze of lassitude that enveloped his mind. But it was far from a restful slumber. Even through the thick blanket of sleep, Raven could sense turmoil and sadness radiating from Beastboy's psyche.

_He's still not at peace. But there's no point in waking him up. Maybe tomorrow I'll try talking to him again. I'll return the journal to him then, as well._

_Huh, never thought I'd be going out of my way to talk to BB. Maybe he's not the only one with mental issues._

Still holding the journal, Raven turned and headed down the hallway, and entered the familiar confines of her room. Setting the small book down on her dresser, she glanced over at her meditation mirror, which lay nearby. She briefly considered a brief trip to the inner realm of her mind, in the hopes of discovering the nature of the strange "dream connection" that seemed to have formed between Beastboy's mind and her own. But, exhaustion asserted its influence over her, and she decided to head to sleep. Slipping on a pair of black silk pajamas, she burrowed under the soft down comforter of her bed, and was taken by sleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

* * *

**The boy fought down another wave of nausea as he felt the small boat lurch violently in the roiling waters of the river.**

**He was starting to regret being persuaded by his mother and father to accompany them on their expedition to collect samples from an isolated chimpanzee population in a remote area of the small nation of Upper Lamumba accessible only by water. Indeed, he certainly would be more physically comfortable had he elected to stay back at King Tawaba's village. The Tribal Elder always went out of his way to treat him with kindness; in some ways, it made up for the stares that his green skin sometimes garnered him from the other villagers.**

**But the prospect of spending time with his mom and dad in the wilderness, watching the animals was irresistible. Despite his unfortunate encounter with the Sakutia-infected monkey, he was still fascinated by nature and wildlife. In fact, he loved animals more than every in some ways, being that he a had a rather "unique" insight into them now.**

**So, here he was. **

**As he lay down on the cot in the boats' cramped cabin, he could hear his mother's voice on the other side of the bulkhead, speaking to his father.**

**"Mark, maybe we should turn back. This water is much rougher than we expected." Her voice held a definite note of concern. Apparently, she was disliking this journey as much as her son was.**

**"It's fine, Marie. I've got it under control. The river's flowing a little high from all the rain we had last week. We've just got a little chop, that's all. How's Gar doing?"**

**"I sent him down to the cabin. He was getting seasick."**

**His father laughed. "He'll be alright. He's a tough kid. Hey, could you hand me that chart? I want to see if I can fig-"**

**His fathers' words were cut off as the boat was rocked by a huge impact.. The boy was pitched forward off the cot towards the bow of the boat. As he hit the floor, he was doused with water, as the river poured into the boat though a huge rent that had been torn into its aluminum hull by whatever submerged object they had hit.**

**Struggling to his feet, the child rushed out of the cabin to the deck, only to find his mother and father scrambling to try to gain control of the crippled vessel.**

**"Mom! Dad! There's a hole in the boat! The water's getting in!" The boy panted, his heart pounding with fright.**

**"Yes, Gar. We know." His father responded, not looking away from the helm as he struggled to steer the foundering craft through the rapids they were caught in. "We hit a log or something, and it punched a hole in us." If he was panicked, he was doing a good job of hiding it.**

**Gar's mother looked over from the port side of the boat, were she was looking at the shoreline. "Mark, we're too far from the bank! Can you bring us closer?"**

**"I'm trying, but she's not responding. All the water that's coming into the bow is pulling the front of the boat down."**

**Gar looked at the doorway to the cabin, and saw that the water had completely filled the small compartment, and was starting to flood the deck. "Dad, look!"**

**"I see it son." Gar saw his father close his eyes for a moment, and then open them, with a look of determination on his face. He let go of the helm. "Marie, come here please."**

**Gar's mother joined them at the helm of the rapidly sinking craft. Her face was very pale. "Mark, the water's too rough to swim for it how will we-"**

**"Shhh.." Mark Logan put a hand on her arm, and looked her in the eyes. Something unspoken seemed to pass between Gars' parents as he watched them. Then, they turned back to him, and his father spoke in a serious voice.**

**"Gar, I want you to listen to me very carefully. I want you to change into a bird, and fly away from here. I want you to fly back to Tawaba's village, and tell him what happened. He will take care of everything."**

**Gar looked back at his father, not believing what he was hearing. "Dad, I can't leave you! I-I won't do it..."**

**His mother knelt down beside him, and put a comforting arm around his shoulders. "Garfield, you have to do what your father says. Don't worry about us. Just get back to the village. It'll be alright." She drew him close and kissed him on the cheek. "We love you more than anything else in the world, Gar. Never forget that!"**

**Just then, Gar felt the deck of the boat begin to tilt upwards as the bow began to disappear beneath the roiling water.**

**His father stepped toward him, and put a hand on his shoulder. "We don't have much time, son. You need to get to safety."**

**Gar nodded, trying to ignore the cold feeling that was growing in the pit of his stomach. He stepped back towards the stern of the boat. In his mind he formed the image of a Harpy Eagle, focused on it, and immediately felt the change begin.**

**As always, the pain was quite intense. Gar could actually feel his organs and tissues altering, shifting and reshaping themselves to fit the animal's shape. His skin felt as thought it were in flames as feathers sprouted from it. The changes to his skeletal structure were the ****worst; Gar was in agony as he felt his bones fracture and knit themselves back together again. He would have cried out, if he had been physically able to.**

**A few moments later, the painful process was over, and a green eagle stood on the deck where the boy had stood moments before. **

**The bow of the boat was now completely under water, and the rest was sinking rapidly. **

**His father spoke. "There isn't much time left, son. You have to leave us now." His father smiled at him. "Be safe, Garfield."**

**Gar spread his huge wings and lifted off with a powerful beat. Catching an updraft off the river, he spiraled up higher and higher above the doomed craft. Looking down below him, his keen avian eyes saw his father and mother looking back up at him, with their arms around one another. Moments later, the small vessel rolled belly up, and disappeared beneath the surface.**

**The keening cry of the eagle echoed across the river basin.**

* * *

"No!" 

Raven awoke with a grief-stricken call escaping her lips. Her eyes darted about rapidly, taking in the familiar surroundings of her room, still cloaked in the dark of night. As she attempted to calm herself, she put a hand to her face, and felt dampness upon her cheeks.

_Tears? I was crying? I never cry... No, it wasn't me. It was Beastboy._

Taking deep, calming breaths, Raven took control of her emotions, and considered what she had seen in her dreams.

_That was Beastboy's mother and father. I saw... he saw them die. He couldn't have been more than eight, at the most_.

She remembered the shapeshifter's reluctance to discuss his parents .

_He feels guilty, because he couldn't save them. And he's felt that guilt ever since they died. All those years..._

_How could he have kept all that to his self for so long? No one can repress something like that, and come away unscathed. I'm one to know_...

_Is it possible that all these negative emotions could be related to the Beast? After all, in all the previous appearances of the Beast, he's been in a bad state, emotionally._

_I'll have to let Cyborg know about my theory. But first, I need to know why this is happening. And seeing as it's still two hours to sunrise, I guess there's no time like the present._

Rising from her bed, Raven changed into her typical leotard and cloak. After changing, she took up the small, ornately crafted hand mirror that was actually a portal into the depths of her own mind. Seating herself cross-legged upon her bed, she took a deep breath, and turned her gaze to the polished surface of the mirror. She saw the glass begin to glow with strange mystical light, and felt the familiar wrenching sensation as she was physically drawn within her own mind.

* * *

When the light dimmed, Raven found herself on one of the strange rocky "islands" that floated within the expanses of her mind. All around, a starry, perpetually benighted sky surrounded her. Recovering from the momentary disorientation that always accompanied the journey into her mind, she began following a well-worn path on the ground, in search of the one particular emotion that she thought might be able to provide her the answers she sought. 

It was always difficult for Raven to mark the passage of time within her mind. Minutes sometimes felt like hours, and vice-versa. However, after what seemed like a not too long period of time, Raven came across a familiar fork in the path she was following. As she turned down the right hand path, she heard something that made her pause. It was the sound of someone crying softly.

Raven sighed. "Come on out, Timid. It's just me."

The gray-cloaked emotional personification emerged from behind one of the large boulders that dotted the landscape. Her face was streaked with tears, and her lower lip trembled as she choked back her sobs. She approached Raven with her cloak wrapped tightly around her slender frame, and her hood drawn up.

Raven regarded her doppleganger with some exasperation. Timid, along with Anger, were possibly her least favorite emotional incarnations to deal with, as they represented the feelings she had the most trouble dealing with.

"Timid, what's the matter with you? You're even worse than usual, if that's possible."

"It was... so sad..." Timid said in a near-whisper. "How could he live with all that inside him?" The fearful emotion sank to the ground, her shaking apparent even through the cloak she kept wrapped tightly about herself.

Raven was quickly loosing patience. "Timid, do you have any idea why I'm seeing these things? Why I'm looking into Beastboy's memories at night?"

Timid shook her head mutely. "No."

"Didn't think so. Do you know where Wisdom is?"

Timid pointed to the path that Raven was already traveling down "There. By the Tree."

"Her usual place, then. I'll see if she can help us." Raven looked at Timid, and sighed once more. "Try not to bawl your eyes out. I'm going to fix this."

Timid looked up at her from the depths of her hood. Her purple eyes were wide as saucers. "Help Beastboy. That will help all of us."

Raven didn't know quite how to respond to that, so she moved on, leaving Timid to her perpetual sadness.

After a few minutes of walking, she came to the location she was searching for, a low valley, dominated by the Tree.. The Tree was just that: a tree. A huge tree actually, taller than the mightiest sequoia, its branches canopied whole acres. It stood out form the desolate gray wasteland around it like a tower. Of course, no tree should be able to thrive in the perpetual night of Raven's psyche, but strange things like that were commonplace in her mind.

At the base of the tree's massive trunk was Wisdom, cloaked in russet brown, floating several feet off the ground with her legs crossed as she meditated, with her eyes shut and a serene expression on her features.

She spoke at Raven's approach, her eyes not opening. "I was wondering when you'd come to see me."

Raven always felt a little wary around Wisdom. She always got the impression that she always knew more than she said. It was a ridiculous notion, since Wisdom was simply an aspect of Raven's psyche. Nevertheless... she always got the sense that she was being being evaluated, whenever they talked.

Wisdom opened her eyes as Raven came to stand before her. "Would I be correct in guessing that this would be about the dreams?"

"You would." Raven answered rather tersely. "Why is this happening?"

Wisdom allowed herself to settle to the ground and stood up, lowering her hood. "Quite simply, since the defeat of your father, there have been a few changes taking place within your mind."

"Changes? What do you mean?"

"Before the affair with Trigon, you were always worried that if you allowed yourself to experience any emotion too intensely, the resultant loss of control could be exploited by your father, which is pretty much what he had in mind." Wisdom looked at Raven very directly "It was the whole reason he sired you, after all."

Raven grimaced a little. She preferred not to think about anything having to do with her father or her childhood.

Wisdom continued, "But now, that particular threat is passed. Granted, your powers are still driven by your feelings, but that is a something that you may yet learn to deal with, given time. And now, certain of us within you are growing... restless, I suppose the word would be,"

Raven looked at Wisdom sternly "'Certain of _us?'_ You mean my emotions."

"Indeed. Actually, _most _of your emotions, to be precise. You've kept them bottled up for so long, that this sort of thing was inevitable, The pressure within your psyche has been building for years, and now it's finding its way out. What you are seeing at night is you mind's empathic senses reaching out and contacting the minds of your friends, at the behest of your emotions. This is easier for them to do at night, because your control over your emotions is lessened when you sleep."

Raven was less than pleased by this news. "This is terrific. My own mind is mutinying on me. I still don't understand why this is happening, and why is my mind so interested in Beastboy, of all people!"

"It has made contact all your friends, certainly, but your mind seems to always drift back to Beastboy, for some reason..." Wisdom seemed to muse to herself for a moment, smiling slightly. "It is possible that your emotions hold some manner of special regard for him. That might be why you have such clear recollections of his mind. Certainly, he is a frequent topic of conversation, amongst us all in here."

"Beastboy? You have to be kidding. I barely think about him."

One of Wisdom's eyebrows raised as she looked at Raven "Oh _really_?" she asked archly. "You forget that I'm privy to all your thoughts and dreams, even the ones you yourself don't care to remember. And some of those are quite interesting, when young Garfield is involved, particularly your dreams." Wisdoms serene smile became slightly wicked. "And I'm _not _talking about the ones that involve his memories, here"

Raven's suddenly felt her herself blushing furiously. _How dare she-!_

Wisdom's smile persisted. "Don't try to lie to me, dear. I am _you_ after all, and lying to one's self is just a shade pathetic."

Raven took a deep breath, trying to gain control of herself. At last she spoke in a small voice, "But _why? _Why is this happening now?"

Wisdom stepped toward Raven, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You're growing up, Raven. And it's about time. Your emotions want to further this process by becoming closer to your compatriots, with or without your conscious aid. You have to become more familiar with your emotions, more in touch with them. Given time, they will be a powerful aid to you, rather than the hindrance you seem to regard them as now. And I think Beastboy would be a good place to start."

Raven was slightly confused. "Won't my powers be out of control, If I allow my emotions that much free reign?"

"Not necessarily. You were pretty upset when you awoke from the dream of Garfield's parents, and there wasn't any problem, then. The key is to not allow yourself to be dominated by your emotions, to not let them control you. It's alright to feel, Raven. Just don't let those feelings override your reason."

Raven sighed. She seemed to be doing a lot of sighing, lately. "Go on," she said, "What should I do?"

"What Beastboy needs right now is a friend. You do remember how you felt after Malchior's betrayal, right? What he feels right now is similar. He's alone. And very afraid. On top of that, speaking about his past has unearthed all the feelings he's suppressed regarding his parent's deaths. Indeed, he's almost as good as you at burying his true feelings; the difference is that he hides them behind humor, rather than apathy.

"In short, you need to go to him, and you need to talk."

Raven's look was slightly puzzled. "That's it?"

"That's it. It'll be good for both of you. You'd be amazed how powerful an honest conversation between two close friends can be. And it does have to be you two alone, not any of the other Titans. Starfire was quite correct when she made that assessment."

Raven stepped away from Wisdom. "If that's all, then I guess I'll be going. It's probably getting close to sunrise, and it's a fair distance to the Forbidden Door."

Wisdom began levitating herself again, resuming the Lotus position. "Are you going to talk to Garfield?"

"I'll think about it," Raven replied in her trademark monotone.

"Don't think too long. The whole point is to learn to feel, rather than think."

Raven had nothing left to say, so she turned and began walking away from the Tree.

"Pleasant dreams, Raven." Wisdom's slightly amused voice called from behind her as she departed.

Raven was glad her back was turned, to deprive Wisdom of the satisfaction of seeing her blush again.

* * *

With a flash of light, and the familiar disorienting lurch, Raven was deposited back on her bed. Setting her meditation mirror aside, she looked over to the large window that dominated one wall of her room As she walked over to it, she could see the first faint glow of dawn lighting the overcast sky. 

_Looks like rain,_ she thought to herself. _Suits my mood._

As she turned her eyes to the rocky shore of the isle that the Tower was situated upon, she saw a lone figure seated upon one of the larger rocks. Despite her distant vantage point, she could see that the figure was unmistakably Beastboy, sitting motionless, and gazing out over the bay.

Raven could hear Wisdom's words, telling her to go to her teammate, and talk to him, to help him. After a moment of inexplicable nervousness, Raven impulsively decided to heed that advice. It was still early, and the others would not be roused for breakfast yet. They'd probably never be more alone, so this might be best opportunity to approach him privately.

Drawing upon her dark powers, she phased though the window, and descended down to her teammate's side.

TO BE CONTINUED...

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Yeah, I hear you; I said Jinx would be back. Don't worry, she will. I just couldn't fit her in this chapter. Now that we're starting to get some of the drama out of the way, be looking for the larger plot to make a re-emergence soon. Plus, Raven confronts Beastboy about his past.

This chapter ended up being much longer than I thought it would be, even without the author's notes, it's the longest one yet. So, a few things were pushed to the next chap (again.)

And you should also know that my portrayal of Wisdom was modeled off of Demigod's from his excellent story "Seven Year's Bad Luck in One Day." If you haven't read that one yet, do yourself a favor and do so, right away.

Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed this, and are looking forward to chap 5. Thanks for reading.

Regards,

The Doctor

20 September 2005


	5. Morning

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

ACKNOWLEGEMENTS:

One again, I'd like to thank everyone who read and reviewed Chapter Four.

First off, I'd like to Dedicate this chapter to the all the BBRae shippers. I know some of you were clamoring for this scene (I'm lookin' at you, WickedWitchoftheSE!) So here it is; something just a little fluffy.

Also, much love to my Beta-Reader, Vixxelinn. Without her pointing out when me write badly, you no get good story for read.

Finally, I'd like to extend my gratitude to CalliopeMused, For providing guidance when it was sorely needed, and inspiration when mine had run dry. Maybe one day, I'll be as good a writer as her (I hope!) Thank you so much.

* * *

CHAPTER 5: MORNING

Beastboy was unsure why this was "his" place. It seemed that everyone had a place they went to when they needed to think, to clear their head. Raven had the roof. Robin had the training room. Cyborg had the garage. Starfire had the kitchen.

Beastboy had a rock.

Well, calling it a mere "rock" was a bit of an understatement. It was a boulder, actually.

Beastboy wasn't sure how many times he had come to the now familiar boulder. He couldn't even figure out what made this particular area of the shore so special; one boulder was much the same as any other. And yet, whenever his mind was ill at ease, he always found himself there.

On this particular morning, Beastboy found himself sitting in the dim pre-dawn twilight, trying to come to terms with the ghosts he thought he'd exorcised years before.

_It_'_s been so long since I'd talked about my parents to anyone... not since the Doom Patrol. _

_And that certainly turned out well, didn't it?_

Beastboy sincerely hoped that the judgment of his current teammates wasn't as harsh as the Patrol's had been. But he didn't hold out much hope; truly there were many similarities between Robin and his former superior in the Patrol, Mento. They were both good guys, but above all else, the team came first.

_Maybe I shouldn't be a part of the Titans, anyway... who knows if I'll lose control again? It's not like the Titans are suffering from a great shortage of bad guys to fight... the last thing they need is worry about me. I can't stand the thought that I could hurt one of them... I have my parents' blood on my hands already... I don't want my friends', too!_

Beastboy was roused from his unpleasant musings by the the sound of a soft footstep on the shore behind him. He didn't need to turn to know the person's identity; his unnaturally keen nose caught the scent of sandalwood incense and old books.

"Good mornin', Raven." Beastboy looked up at the murky gray clouds in the sky above. "Well, it's a morning, anyway. What's up? Are the others lookin' for me, or something?"

"No, they're all still asleep. But , ummm... I'd like to talk to you. Well... 'need to talk to you' might be more accurate."

Beastboy turned to face her. "That sounds fairly ominous." As he looked at her, something seemed... off, about her demeanor. Her hood was up, but even so, Beastboy could see that she seemed to be unwilling to look at him. Her eyes seemed to be fixed at a spot on the ground at her feet.

_Great, why do I get the feeling things are about to get bad?_

"Well, you certainly seem serious...er. Go ahead."

Raven sat down on the boulder, several yards away from Beastboy. After a moment's silence, she spoke quietly. "I want to talk to you some more... about your childhood."

"What's there to talk about?" Beastboy said, a hint of wariness coming into his voice. "I thought my dad's journal would cover the details of my disease I'm not real sure on."

"That's not exactly what I mean." Raven lifted her head and looked at Beastboy. "I want you to tell me about your parents."

Beastboy looked away from her, fixing his eyes on turbulent waters of the bay. "There's nothing to talk about." His voice had an uncharacteristically cold quality to it.

"I beg to differ," Raven replied dryly. "I'm not certain how to break this to you gently, so I'll just say it.

"I saw your parents die. I saw them drown."

Beastboy turned to face her again, his shock plainly written on his face. "What? H-how did you...?"

Raven sighed. "It seems that since defeating Trigon, there have been some... things going on with my powers. I looked into your mind while you were sleeping last night, an-"

"You looked into my mind?" Beastboy rose to his feet, scowling like a thundercloud. "Raven that's... how could you? I mean, I know that the others sent you to get me to talk, but that's... how could you do that to me?"

"Beastboy, stop! Just listen to me a second!" Raven rose to face him, uncharacteristic hurt flashing on her features. "Please, just let me explain..."

At the sight of Raven's anguish, Beastboy felt his anger at her subsiding. It was unusual to see such an open display of feeling from the stoic girl, and he was always affected deeply when she was upset. "Alright. I'm sorry. I'm listening," He said.

She took a deep breath. "It wasn't intentional; I'd never do anything like that to you. It's something that's been happening while I'm asleep. Instead of having normal dreams, my mind has been looking into yours at night. I'm not doing it on purpose, believe me."

Beastboy looked puzzled. "I'm not sure I understand. Why is your mind so interested in me?"

"Well, it seems that my subconscious has taken a look into all the Titan's thoughts, but I always seem to remember... yours, for... whatever reason," Raven replied, with a trace of embarrassment in her tone. "Possibly, it's because of the strength of what your feeling right now. You are going though a very hard time right now; it's only natural that my empathy would pick up on that, I suppose... but I'm not certain."

Beastboy turned away from her and looked out into the distance once again. "Then, you saw them. You saw the accident?" he said in a small voice.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," Raven replied, taking a step closer to her. "I saw it, and I... felt what you were feeling when it happened. I'm very sorry, Beastboy. I wish I could tell you that I understand what you're going though, but I don't. I've never felt anything like that, myself. But If there's anything you need to say, I'm willing to listen."

The green Titan continued staring out over the water. "What is there to say? They're dead. I'm alive. I moved on."

"That's just it, Beastboy, you haven't. When we talked about them yesterday, I could still feel the sadness in you. It was the same thing you were feeling all those years ago. You haven't moved on at all; you just hide the grief behind that clown mask you wear for us. You can't do that forever."

Beastboy didn't trust himself to respond to her words. He continued to stand in stony silence, looking out at the eastern horizon.

After a few moments, he heard Raven speak. "Aren't you going to say anything to me?" Her soft voice seemed very close now, almost as in she were standing at his shoulder. He continued his silent vigil.

"Fine, then. " She paused a few moments, and he heard her sigh, as if in resignation. "If you won't talk... then maybe you'll listen." Beastboy heard her cloak rustle softly. He turned and found her seated upon the rock once again, now with her hood lowered. In the pale light of the dawn, her gray skin had an almost ghostly pallor. The twilight leeched the color out of her cloak and hair, turning them black, yet made her huge amethyst eyes glow almost incandescently.

"R-Raven, " Beastboy stammered, "I'm not sure I understand wh-"

"Quiet," Raven said, cutting him off, "you had your chance to talk. Now, you just need to listen. And you might as well make yourself comfortable; this might take awhile."

Intrigued at his normally laconic teammate's sudden need to talk, Beastboy sat down next to her on the boulder, his protests forgotten for the moment. Looking over at her, he saw her expression grow pensive as she began to speak.

"Obviously, you know a little about my father, but I've never spoken about my mother, have I?"

Beastboy shook his head.

"I thought not. My mother was a young woman named Angela Roth, who was originally from Gotham City."

"From Gotham?" Beastboy interjected, surprised.

"That's right. Contrary to popular belief, I'm only half demon," Raven drawled. "Angela was a troubled young girl, from what I've heard; supposedly, her parents were stern and domineering, bordering on abusive, even. I have to acknowledge that much of what I'm telling you I've heard second or third hand, but all the things I've seen point to it being true."

"You're trying to say that your mom didn't talk about her past much?"

"My mother didn't talk about much of anything, with me," Raven replied in a quiet voice. Before Beastboy could ask her more, she continued. "Eventually, it seems that Angela grew tired of the oppressive environment she lived in, so she ran away. She lived on the streets for awhile, stealing money and food to get by. But, it wasn't enough, and she probably would have just ended up another statistic, had she not stumbled onto the church, one night."

"'The church?'"

"An abandoned, run down old church in a rather disreputable portion of Gotham City. If I remember what I've heard correctly, she wandered in one rainy night, looking for shelter from the storm. But the church was not as abandoned as she thought. It was home to a group that called themselves The Chosen."

"That sounds pretty ominous," Beastboy noted.

"Well, Angela was in no condition to care. All that mattered to her was that they treated her well. They fed her, clothed her, gave her a place to stay. She could scarcely be blamed for not thinking about what they might have wanted in return." Raven paused from her account, and took a deep breath. "She was probably about the same age as I am right now, not any older, certainly. And no doubt more than a little suggestible. Before long, Angela was a member of the Chosen. And she was happy; for the first time she had a sense of belonging, and people around her that seemed to care for her. So, when the the Chosen said they needed her help with something, she was probably all too happy to help them. They wanted her to take part in a ceremony. A ritual, actually. A ritual to summon a powerful demon to this dimension, temporarily."

"Trigon, right?"

Raven nodded. "That's correct. And the cult wasn't entirely honest with Angela about her role in the ritual. She was promised that as a participant in the rite, she'd be guaranteed a lifetime of happiness. But she wasn't just a mere participant: She had a much more important purpose. The Chosen were actually a cult that worshiped Trigon. They had a prophecy that said the only way for their master to enter our world would be for him to conceive a child, a half human, half demon abomination, that would act as a key to open the door between our world and his.

"The ritual summoned Trigon to this plane briefly, and while he was here, he... took her."

Beastboy was horrified; he did not miss what Raven meant.

"Oh, Raven, I... I-I'm so sorry. I never realized that that's how you were..." Beastboy felt profoundly uncomfortable. "I don't know what to say..."

"You don't have to say anything, Beastboy. It's in the past." Raven's voice hadn't strayed from her usual dry monotone, but her eyes looked a little haunted. Beastboy didn't have Raven's empathic abilities, but he could tell that this was difficult for her.

"Raven, listen, I'm not sure why you were telling me this stuff, but you don't have to say anything else-"

"Yes, Beastboy, I do have to." She said with a note of grim determination in her voice. Then she looked at him, and actually smiled a little. "Well, maybe I should say that I _want_ to. It's strange... I came down here to try to get you to talk, because I always heard that's the kind of thing friends do for each other, when one of them is troubled. But _I_ wasn't expecting to be the one doing the talking. I guess that sometimes it does feel good to confide in someone you trust."

"So, you trust me that much?" Beastboy asked her softly.

Raven looked at him, an unreadable expression in her eyes. "Yes, Beastboy, yes I do."

Beastboy was speechless. For his part, he had always considered Raven a close friend, but had just resigned himself to the fact that there would always be a certain distance between them. But now she was stating her complete, unqualified trust in him, and sharing a element of her life that he had a feeling she'd told few - if _any_ - others about.

Beastboy smiled at her, the first genuine smile he'd given since his transformation into the Beast the previous day. "Alright Raven. I'll listen to anything you want to share."

"Thank you," she replied, and began her story again.

"After she was violated, Angela felt that something was... wrong... inside of her. She left the Chosen that very night, in horrible pain, both physical and emotional. She was living on the streets once again, destitute, and alone. And she soon realized that she was with child.

"Her unnatural pregnancy moved along with great speed, and she knew that soon she would give birth. In desperation, she even contemplated ending her own life, to stop the delivery, but something always held her back, in the depths of her mind."

"All the while, Angela's plight was being observed by a group of mystics from the dimension of Azarath."

This jogged something in Beastboy's memory. "Azarath... as in 'Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos?'"

"Correct. Azar, the leader of the monks of Azarath, recognized the potential threat a half-demon child represented . So, shortly before she was due to give birth, the monks came to Angela, and rescued her, taking her back to their home, out of the reach of Trigon's minions."

"And so, you were born in this Azarath place, right?" Beastboy surmised.

"Yes, that's where I was raised, and learned control over my powers."

"So, why did you leave?"

Raven looked down at her hands, folded delicately in her lap. "Things started getting... awkward for me, as I got older. I was starting to ask some uncomfortable questions. I was becoming curious as to the nature of my powers, and my past, which I was never told about in much detail. Eventually, I did some digging through the archives of the Monks of Azarath, and found out most of what I just told you, in addition to the prophecy that said I would be the portal that would allow Trigon to enter our universe. When I discovered all this, I didn't take it so well, and I ran from Azarath. " She chuckled wryly. "I guess I did take after my mother, a little."

Beastboy thought about all this for a moment. "And you found your way here, to Earth... what about your mom? Will you ever go back to Azarath?"

Raven's expression became even more solemn than usual. "I can't. I tried to go back when you and the other Titans were fighting Slade at the library, but... I saw a vision, of some sort. I thought I was talking to my mother, there, and then I saw Azarath in ruins. I'm not how much it was real and how much was Trigon playing mind games with me. But I do know that Azarath was destroyed by Trigon; I've confirmed that much. I'm not sure what became of my mother, but she probably didn't make it."

"Raven, I'm so sorry. Hey, if you want, maybe me and the other Titans can help you try to fi-"

"No, Beastboy, that's alright." Raven replied, giving him a serious look. "That's part of what I want you to understand here. I've spent the greater portion of my life focused on my past, convinced that it defined everything I could be. No more. I won't allow my history to dictate my future, and neither should you."

"It's not that easy, Raven," he said.

"Who said it was easy? Nobody promised you easy. It took me the end of the world to figure it out. What will it take for you?" Raven's tone was just a trifle exasperated.

"Why, Raven? Why are you doing this?"

"Well, on a purely logical level, Your mind and body are linked on a very intrinsic level. It might be quite possible that your emotional state might be linked to appearances of the Beast. So, as a teammate, I have a responsibility to be aware of how your emotional state might be affecting you.

"But more importantly, you're my friend, and I don't want to see you like this. That's what really matters."

Beastboy was a little shocked by the vehemence in Raven's words. Feeling suddenly uncomfortable, he stood up and walked to the edge of the boulder, looking away from her. Taking a deep breath to try to steady his nerves, Beastboy began to speak.

"Well, there's not much to talk about, is there? I mean you saw it, didn't you? I... I could have done _something, _Raven! But I ran. I lived, and they died, because I left them."

"Beastboy, you didn't fail them. There was nothing you could have done. I was inside or your memories; I felt how hard it was for you to change. You said yourself it took time for you to master shifting into the larger animals. What mattered was your parents wanted their child to survive, and that's what happened. Is surviving so bad?"

"Sometimes, I'm not so sure how to answer that," Beastboy said in a morose voice.

"Well, I'm glad that you're here, in any case. "

"That... that really does help, Rae. Thank you," he said quietly. Beastboy kept his back to her, afraid that his face might betray his feelings. "It's just... It's just hard for me to put it out of my mind. I never even had the chance to mourn them, even. I had no close family, so I went back to the village, and it was like... I dunno. I mean, King Tawaba took care of me, for a while, and he was great, but... the other people in the village gave me strange looks, because of my being green, and all. It wasn't the same; it wasn't a home."

"I can't say that I can relate to being green, but I certainly can understand what it's like to being different. To be an outsider." Raven's voice was closer to him now, as though she had stood up and stepped nearer to him, as he continued to stare out at the coming dawn. "As for grieving for your parents, that's perfectly natural. You should mourn for them, but then you should move on. It's what they would have wanted." Her voice held a note of gentleness that was rarely heard, coming from the normally distant girl.

Beastboy could actually feel his hands trembling as he stood, still resolutely facing away from her. His voice quavered as he spoke. "After that, I found my way back to the States, and I tried to make a home for myself, somewhere. But nothing worked. I was always the outsider. Always different. But I found that if I was the funny guy, people tended to be a little more at ease with a freak like me hanging around. So, I tried to fit in that way. And I almost thought I had found it, found a home, with the Doom Patrol. But... I was wrong. I still wasn't good enough."

Beastboy heard Raven step up behind him, her voice was almost in his ear as she spoke. "Maybe it wasn't a matter of being good enough. Maybe Mento and the Doom Patrol wanted you to be something you weren't. And you have found a home , here with us. Granted, it's a strange sort of home, but then, being normal is overrated, anyway."

Beastboy had to fight to speak around the lump that had formed in his throat. "What about the Beast?" he asked sadly. "I can't put you guys through that! I don't want to risk hurting you! You're the closest things I've had to family since I lost my mom and dad. I can't do that to you..." His voice cracked with emotion as he trailed off.

"And what about the Beast?" she replied. "The Beast might have saved my life, _twice. _None of the others were hurt. It's just a part of you that we will have to deal with, together, just like we did with my demon heritage. You and the rest of the Titans were there for me, and helped me deal with that, and we'll help you deal with this. That's what a family does, right?"

For Beastboy, hearing her refer to the Titans as his family was almost more than he could take. He could feel tears beginning to leak from the corners of his eyes, and hoped she couldn't see him weeping as he looked out over the waters.

He took a deep, shuddering breath, and spoke again.

"I just don't want to let you guys down. I mean, I've let everyone down. I let my parents down, and they died, I let the Doom Patrol down, and they nearly died. I can't let the Titans down, too."

All was quiet for a moment, and then Beastboy felt a hand on his shoulder, and heard her voice speaking to him in softly.

"You haven't ever let us down, Beastboy. And I don't think you ever could. You've always been there for us whenever we needed it, be it risking your life along side us, fighting criminals, or simply being there when we needed someone when we were down. And-" she paused for a moment, and when she spoke again, her voice held a nervous note, "-And I want to be there for you, now. If you'll let me." Her hand still rested on his shoulder, comfortingly.

Hearing these words from her was more than his strained nerves could take. A chocked sob escaped him, and he felt hs shoulders shake as his emotions overcame him. As he started crying, he felt two gentle arms encircle his trembling frame, as Raven drew him close, and held him, saying nothing.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Yeah, it was fluffy, but I thought the kids deserved it. I've put BB though some bad stuff, and there's more to come, so I thought I'd give him and Rae a moment. I couldn't resist. And, yeah, it's only one scene long, but I thought it should stand alone. Think of it as an "Interlude."

Anyway, this sort of ends the first half of the story. The second half will concern the Titans' encounter with the mysterious employer of the H.I.V.E. kids from chap 3. But it may take some time getting there; this particular brand of evil is pretty methodical (and I'm still working on that part.)

Once again, I thank you for reading, and hope to see you again for the next chap.

Regards,

The Doctor

9 October 2005

(11Oct 2005-_Special note- I forgot to mention... Some of you who are familiar with the comic probably know that Angela was given a diffrent name when she was taken to Azarath. I know that I didn't mention her other name; it was intentional, as part of a future plot thread. Can't say more, without risking spoilage. I point this out because a reviewer noticed it, and I realized it would probably behooveme to make note of it, to head off confusion. -Doc)_


	6. A Gathering Storm

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

**IMPORTANT NOTE:**

Ok, first, I want to apologise for the lateness of this update. My comp has contracted a serious virus, and my net access has been severely limited. Also, since my e-mail access is limited, I was not able to respond to my reviewers, as I usually do. I'm very sorry. Let me take this chance to say that I was very gratified by the response to chapter 5. It recieved more feedback than any previous chapter, which made me very happy. Thank you all so VERY much!

Also, to answer a question someone posed, there was a reason the "other" name for Raven's mom was not mentioned in the previous chapter. To say any more might spoil. (good eye, Miah the Storm Wolf.)

Also, I should probably say that this story takes place between seasons 4 and 5. Just to clarify. (yeah, kinda late, I know.)

As always, Thanks to Vixx (although she wasn't able to beta, due to my comp problems. I still love ya, girl!) And special thanks to the incredible CalliopeMused, for being a light through the dark labyrinth of writers' block. And all of you reading this should go read her story "Dance of the Skeletons," like, immediately.

I'll wait.

* * *

CHAPTER 6: A GATHERING STORM

The door to the Titans' Tower living area hissed open, and a still rather groggy Starfire floated into the room, stifling a yawn. She looked about the kitchen area with eyes that were heavy with lingering sleep.

_It would appear that I am the first to awaken,_ she thought to herself. _It is somewhat disappointing that Robin is not here to join me. He is usually first awake, and I do enjoy it when he sits and talks to me._

The door opened again, and the Tamaranean princess was joined by Cyborg.

"Joyous morning, friend!" Starfire greeted her teammate.

"Eh, a little rainy for my tastes, but it'll do," he replied. "Any of the others out and about?"

Starfire shook her head. "I have not seen them. Robin is usually awake around this hour, but he has not appeared."

Cyborg grinned a little. "He was probably up extra late obsessing last night. You know how he gets."

"Truly."

As Cyborg walked over to the pantry to gather the necessary ingredients for breakfast, Starfire drifted over to the large window that dominated one wall of the living room.

"What will you be prepairing for break fast this morning?" she called to him as she looked out the window.

"That's _'breakfast,'_ Star," He corrected gently. "And I'm not sure yet. I was thinking of something vegetarian actually, for BB. Poor guy could probably use a pick-me-up, after all."

Starfire smiled as she looked out the window at the dawn. "Indeed, that would be most wonderful of you." Just then, something caught her eye, on the shore below the tower. As she looked down, she saw her fellow Titans Raven and Beastboy, holding each other close.

_Glorious! My friends are opening their hearts to each other! I knew I had not misread their feelings!_

Cyborg glanced over at Starfire, noting her staring out of the window, a large smile upon her face. "What 'cha lookin' at, Star?"

She looked back at him, still smiling brightly. "Oh, nothing. It is just a wonderful day, that is all."

* * *

Later that morning, after breakfast, Raven and Cyborg met in the medlab, to discuss Beastboys' condition. 

"Mentally, he seems to be on the mend," the empath stated. "Beastboy has a lot of personal issues that he never shared with us before. But we really shouldn't be terribly surprised that he has a few, though. Normal people don't do what we do. "

"Huh, you know, I never would have suspected that," Cyborg noted. "BB always seemed so happy-go-lucky."

Raven nodded. "Yes, he's almost as good at hiding things as Robin, or even me, for that matter. I think that much of his humor was a defense, of sorts. He was trying to ignore the things that were hurting him. "

"Do you think his mental state might have something to do with him becoming the Beast?" Cyborg asked.

"It certainly seems possible. Stress does seem to be a common factor. The first time he changed, he had just had a tense confrontation with us. The second time, he was being interrogated by Robin."

"Not to mention that you had been injured." Cyborg noted. "Then he changed again to defend you from Slade and Trigon. And this last time, He'd thought you were injured, possibly even killed."

"The evidence certainty seems to be there." Raven thought for a moment. "Did the information in the journal help any?"

"Yes, there were a few things that I didn't notice in my previous exams. Real subtle stuff. There do seem to be a few similarities in some of the changes in neurological activity caused by the chemicals he was exposed to in the fight with Adonis, and the massive electrical shock he got from Gizmo."

"So, maybe the combination of a psychological stress, and certain physical ones can cause him to lose control, and change?"Raven conjectured.

Cyborg nodded. "We'll go with that as the most likely theory, for now."

A thought occurred to Raven. "What about the fight with Slade? I can't think of an abnormal physical stress then..."

"That might be an aberration, due to unusual circumstances," Cyborg conjectured. "After all, from what he said, he pretty much _wanted_ to be the Beast, then."

"It's a possibility, I suppose," Raven conceded. "Anyway, it's about as good a theory as we can come up with, on short notice."

Cyborg scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Now we just have to figure out what to do about it. I can continue to work on the physiological angle. I've enteredthe data into the computer, and run a few scenarios, so we can be ready to help him better if this happens again. This'll certainly help a lot. Think you'll be able to tackle the mental part of things, Raven?"

"I think we might already have made some progress, in that regard. He seems to be willing to share things with me, now. I think talking his problems out might be good for him."

Cyborg smiled. "Never thought I'd ever hear you say something like that, Raven." The cybernetic teen then remembered what Starfire had said to he and Robin the previous day. "So, BB's been sharing things with you, eh? That's... interesting."

"And why do you say that, exactly?" Raven asked, with a hint of defensiveness in her voice.

"Oh, no reason, in particular," Cyborg quickly replied, deciding to keep certain speculations to his self, in the face of Raven's notorious temper.

_Well, if Star's right about those two, _Cyborg thought to himself, _BB'll certainly have to stay on his toes, around her._

* * *

Robin had to admit, he was slightly nervous about what he was about to do. He prided himself on his leadership ability, but he was self aware and honest enough to know that sometimes personal interaction was an area that he was somewhat lacking in. That sort of thing was more Cyborg or Starfires' area. He tended to rub people the wrong way, sometimes, which is a trait that he felt that he might have picked up from his mentor. And in his quest to be a decisive, effective leader, he sometimes didn't have a chance to consider the feelings of his teammates, such as the first incident when Beastboy became the Beast, and Raven was injured. Robin was forced to make a quick decision, one that he came to regret later. He was determined not to repeat this mistake. 

With this thought in mind, Robin entered the living room, to find Beastboy seated upon the couch, focused intently upon a video game. The Titans' leader politely waited for the green teenagers' turn to end before speaking to him.

"Hey, Beastboy. How are you doing?"

"Hi, Rob," Beastboy responded, "Anything I can do for you?"

"Not in particular... just wanted to see if you were feeling better."

"Actually, I am, a little." Beastboy smiled. "Raven's been a big help. You did the right thing, sending her to help me."

Robin returned his smile a little sheepishly. "Actually, I can't really take credit for that. It was Starfires' idea."

"In any case, she's been great. It felt good to talk to someone."

"Yeah, and I know how tough that is sometimes, and I just want you to know that we're all here for you, any time you need to say something," Robin said.

"Wow, look at Mr. Sensitivity over here," Beastboy joked, "You're not gonna tell me you love me, or anything, are ya? 'Cause Star seems like the jealous type..."

"Oh, knock it off!" Robin shook his head at his fellow Titans' irreverence. Evidently, he really was feeling better. "It's just that Raven mentioned something yesterday, when she was telling us about your past. She mentioned something about your parents."

"Oh," Beastboy remarked, his face slipping into an impassive mask. "What did she tell you?"

"Not too much, she did a good job of keeping the personal stuff to a minimum," Robin assured him. "She just said your parents were... gone."

Beastboy sat silently, his expression still unreadable.

Robin continued, despite his growing discomfort. "Listen, I, uhhh... I know what that's like, to lose your mom and dad. I've been there too, andI know how hard it is."

"Rob, are you sure you're feeling well?" Beastboy finally asked. "I have to say, this is a little unlike you."

"I know, I know! It's just that what you said yesterday, about what happened the first time you... changed, I realize I kinda mishandled that whole thing, and I don't want to do that again, so, I just hope there's no hard feelings between us."

Beastboys' smile returned. " S'alright, dude. I know why you did what ya did. You were worried that I'd hurt Raven. If I'd been in your shoes, I'd have probably done the same thing. While we're at it, sorry I got snappy with you yesterday."

"No need to apologize, it's understandable. I'm glad you're you're feeling better, too. Maybe later today, we'll all-"

Before Robin could finish, the Trouble Alert sounded, its sirens and red lights calling the Titans to attenion.

"Hey, sounds like they're playing our song." Beastboy quipped. "Let's see whats up."

Robin nodded, and as the two made they're way to the main computer terminal, they were joined by their fellow Titans, as they rushed into the room.

Robin read the report that came up on the computer screen. "Looks like someone's tripped the silent alarm at the S.T.A.R. Labs facility on the outskirts of the city."

Cyborg thought it over. "Could be Gizmo, y'know. He'd certainly love to get his hands on all the experimental tech they have there."

Robin nodded. "Possibly...no way to know until we get there." He turned to face Beastboy. "I want you to sit this one out, Beastboy. You're still not fully recovered yet, and I don't want to rush you back to action too soon."

Beastboy looked a little crestfallen, but didn't argue. "Alright. I'll man the fort."

"Thanks. Raven, how are you feeling?"

The empath raised her hood. "I'm ready to go. I recover quicker than a normal human."

"Ok Titans, Lets go." The four teenagers rushed of the room, leaving Beastboy behind.

"Oh well," he sighed. "Looks like I've got the day off." He made his way back to the couch, and restarted his video game, trying not to worry about his comrades.

* * *

As the T-car approached the squat, nondescript building that served as a front for the top secret R and D facility, the Titans were met by a man dressed in the gray uniform of a member of S.T.A.R. Labs security. 

"Thank you for getting here so quickly," said the harried looking man.

"It's no problem, Leutenant," Robin replied, noting the rank insignia on his uniform. "Can you brief us on the Situation?"

"The alarm went off in Sub-Section 2. It's a storage area, where the scientists who work here keep some of the things they develop."

Cyborg joined them. "Any visual on the intruder?"

"Negative. There was no one working in that area at the time of the intrusion, and we lost the feeds from the security cameras soon after. Essentially, we're blind. My men evacuated all the scientists, and established a secure perimeter. We've been sweeping the area since, but have found nothing. And due to the sensitive nature of this facility, I made the decision not to alert the regular authorities."

"You made the right decision," Cyborg noted. "Anyone that can get inside the lab, and not trip an alarm until he's in, must be a pro."

The Leutenant nodded and turned to Robin. "My men are at your disposal... how should we proceed?"

Robin quickly formed a plan. "Maintain your perimeter. Starfire, Cyborg, and I will go in and track down the perp. Raven, you stay out here with the security team. That way, we can stay in touch with them through our Titans' communicators." What Robin didn't say was that he was deliberately giving her the less dangerous assignment. Half demon healing or no, she had been injured just the day before, after all.

"Alright. We'll be ready in case the criminal makes a run for it." Raven showed no sign of being offended by being given the lighter duty, but then, it wasn't always easy to tell what she was feeling.

"Right. Titans, lets go." Robin then turned and led Starfire and Cyborg into the Lab.

* * *

As they entered the lab, the Titans noted that the main lights were non-functional. The only illumination was provided by dim emergency lighting. 

Cyborg looked about the area. "Seems the intruder cut the lights out, probably to give himself cover. Stay close to me, I might be able to pick up something in infra-red. " From the entrance, a long, bare hallway stretched, with doors on either side. "Sub-Section 2 should be over on the east side." he said as led them down the corridor.

"How do you know?" Robin asked curiously.

"My parents used to work for S.T.A.R. Labs," he replied. "I've been inside before, in some of their other labs, and all their branches are pretty much laid out the same."

About halfway down the hallway, Cyborg stopped at a large set of metal double doors. He peered at an electronic keypad by the door. The cybernetic teen lifted his arm and spoke into the communicator that was built into it. "Raven, ask the Lt. what the code is for the door to the Sub-Section."

"1256722," came the tinny reply through the small speaker.

"Thanks. I'll keep the channel open, so you can monitor the situation." Cyborg entered the code and led the Titans into the storage area.

The storage area was a large, warehouse-like space, with tall metal racks festooned with numerous esoteric looking electronic devices and instruments. In the dimly lit environment, there were any number of hiding places for their quarry.

Robin surveyed the area, and spoke. "Alright. Starfire, you stay at the door until you hear out of me or Cyborg, in case he tries to slip around us. Cyborg, we'll start on the north side, and work our way over."

Leaving star to guard the door, Cyborg and Robin began slowly making their way through the room slowly, meticulously checking between the storage shelves for signs of the intruder.

After a short period of time, Cyborg raised his hand, signally Robin to halt. He peered intently down between the tall shelves. I thought I saw something." he whispered.

The Boy Wonder peered at the area his partner was looking at. "I can't see anything."

"It was just a blip, in infra-red. hang on... I'm going to filter my scan."

Robin thought he heard a faint humming sound in the air, not unlike a camera flash charging up. "Do you hear that?"

Suddenly, he saw Cyborg human eye widen in alarm. "Get down!"

Robin didn't need to be told twice. He dropped to the ground, ducking behind some shelving, as a beam of intense red light passed through the air where his head had been moments before. The energy beam hit the wall behind them, leaving a large black scorch mark.

Robin looked over at Cyborg, who had taked cover behind and adjacent set of shelves. "Did you see who it is?" he asked, as another blast of energy ripped through the air between them.

"No! I just heard that hum, and recognised the sound of a particle beam laser being charged!"

Suddenly, the red laser blasts were answered by a barrage of green energy bolts from overhead.

"Friends, I am here!" Starfire called from her airborne position, as she continued, her attack.

Robin looked up to her. "Starfire, cover us!" He drew a pair of explosive stun discs from his utilitly belt, and poised himself. "Cyborg, we do this together, ready?"

Cyborg nodded, seeming to intuitively understand his leaders' tactic. "Ready!"

"Go!"

Robin dashed out in a low crouch, with Cyborg following behind, firing blasts at their opponents position with his sonic cannon. As they advanced, the Boy Wonder hurled his stun discs towards the approximate position of his unseen enemy, behind a stack of crates. A flash and a deafening blast followed the impact of the discs.

"AAAGH!"

A small form was tossed out into the open from behind the storage crates, landing awkwardly face down.

"Gizmo," Robin grated, as Starfire and Cyborg rushed to his side. "Should've known."

Groaning, the diminutive villain struggled to his hands and knees. "Owww...who were you expecting, cludgehead, Catwoman?"

Starfire approached the dazed Gizmo. "You must surrender to the authorities. You cannot continue the fight."

"Ugh, I guess you're right," he groaned with a hand pressed to his temple. "On the other hand..." with lightning quickness, he produced a small device from a pouch on his belt and pointed it at the Titans.

Robin's eyes widened. "Look out he's-" suddenly they were englufed by a blinding flash of light. The searing pain in his eyes made any further speech impossible, as he attempted to shield his burning eyes with one hand.

After a few moments, the white blur that obscured Robins' vision disipated, allowing him to look around. He saw his friends also struggling to recover their sight. "Everyone alright?"

Starfire was blinking rapidly. "My eyesight shall be fully returned shortly."

"Yeah," Cyborg replied. "My normal eye's getting better, but that little runts' toy fried my cybernetic one." He looked about the room. "Where is the little weasel, anyway?"

Robin looked around. There was no trace of Gizmo to be seen. "Everyone stay alert. Even though we can't see him, we know he's still here. No one heard the door operate, did they?"

"No."

"Nah."

Robin nodded. "Right. So, we'll make our way back to the door, and cut him off."

Cyborg smiled. "Little punks' gonna have to go through us to get out of here."

"OK!" Gizmos' voice cheerily rang out from behind them, followed by a blast from his particle beam laser that struck Cyborg in the upper chest. The mechanically enhanced teen fell to his knees with a cry of pain.

"Cyborg!" Robin rushed to the aid of his fallen comrade, noting the blackened metal on his torso with worry. "How bad is-"

"Nothing vital... just hurts like all get-out..." he replied through clenched teeth.

Starfire hovered protectively in front of the two boys, her lips drawn back in fury. "Show yourself, Gizmo! You will pay dearly for harming my friend!"

"Heh, y'know, you're not nearly as pretty when you're angry, girlie..." The tiny criminals' voice now came from their left flank. Star responed to the taunt with a cry of rage and a volley of green starbolts.

"Ha-ha! Too slow, copper top!" Gizmo's voice now came from behind them again. Before Starfire or Robin could wheel around to respond, another beam of red light shot out of the darkness, streaking towards the Tamaranean girl. With her superhuman reflexes, she managed to dodge the worst of the attack, but was still grazed on the arm, leaving a painful-looking burn. The injury brought the airborne alien to the ground, holding her injured arm.

"Starfire!" Robin cried out. He dashed to her side, with a birdarang poised for throwing in his hand.

"Can't fight what you can't see, pit-sniffer." The taunt came from directly in front of them now. Listening closely, Robin could hear the faint hum, signaling that Gizmos' weapon was charging. "Bye-bye, birdie!" The anticipated beam of red light came streaking out of the darkness. Robin could only brace himself for the impact...

...Which never came. Before the beam struck, a blue blur erupted from the floor in front of him.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" As the arcane words were spoken, the Titans were surronded by a bubble of mystical black energy. Gizmos' beam impacted harmlessly against the magical shield.

"Raven!" Starfire cried out.

"Thank me later, Starfire." Dark energy continuing to pour from her hands, as blasts of red light continued to batter ineffectively aginst her shield. She looked to the Titans' leader. "Robin, do you think you can hit one of the fire sprinklers on the ceiling with an explosive disc?"

Robin was confused, but nodded "Yeah..."

"On the count of three, I'll drop my shield, and you do it. Ready... one... two... three!" The blue cloaked girl dropped her hands and allowed her shield to dissipate. Robin immediately flung an explosive disc to one of the tiny sprinkler heads on the ceiling above their heads, triggering a deluge of water throughout the room.

"Waaagh!" Not far from where they stood, the Titans could see Gizmo's small form, clearly outlined in the droplets of falling water, looking about in confusion.

"Gotcha!" grated the still kneeling Cyborg leveling his sonic cannon at their adversary, and firing. The blast struck the ground at Gizmos' feet, hurling him back several yards away.

"Jeez, hard to hit anything with only one eye," Cyborg lamented.

"Dosen't matter, Cy. We have him now." Robin drew his staff and advanced towards Gizmo, who was struggling to his feet.

As Gizmo stood, a pair of metal wings extended from his backpack.

"Guess it's time for me to fly, Titans!" Gizmo said, as he drew a small black box from his belt. As he pressed a button on the device, a section of the ceiling overhead was blown out by an explosive detonation, revealing the gray skies over the building. "See ya!" A pair of small rocket engines mounted on his backpack ignited, and propelled him into the air, and through the breech in the roof.

"We must pursue!" Starfire cried.

"No, Starfire." Robin replied, "None of us are in any shape to chase him." He shook his head despondently. "He's got us, this time."

Raven walked over to the alien girl. "Here, let me see your arm." The empath held her hand over the burned area on Starfires' limb, touching it lightly with her fingertips. A white nimbus surrounded Ravens' hand, and when she withdrew, the burn was gone, not even leaving a scar.

"Thank you, friend!" Starfire said gratefully. Raven acknowleged her with a nod of her hooded head.

"Yeah, too bad you don't fix electronics, too," quipped Cyborg, looking at the blackened, melted metal on his torso. "By the way, you were obviously monitoring the fight, but how did you know about the water trick?"

"Actually, I wasn't the only one monitoring the fight. Beastboy called me and checked in a little bit ago. I mentioned that it seemed you were fighting Gizmo, and he reminded me about the cloaking device. The sprinklers were just a bit of improvisation. Best thing I could come up with on short notice."

"Well, it was great work." Cyborg looked to Robin. "What now?"

"I'm going to get with some of the lab personel and do a quick inventory. I want to know if anything's missing. Something important must be here, for him to break into a high-security installation like this. I don't think this was a random crime. You three should get back to the tower, and get patched up. I'll get security here to give me a ride back when I'm done."

"You sure you won't need a hand?" Raven asked.

"I'll be fine. Just boring detective stuff here. And you could definitely use a rest." Robin said, catching a note of tiredness in her voice. "I'll call Beastboy and let him know you're on the way back. It's a longway back to the Tower, and I don't want him to worry."

"Alright," Cyborg said. "You can ride with me, ladies." Cyborg led the two girls back out of the lab, as Robin started his investigation. The Titans had been beaten today, and he swore to himself that Gizmo wouldn't escape a third straight encounter.

* * *

**The child was trying to quell the growing fear inside. After all, it was taught that one should not let ones emotions become too strong, lest reason be overwhelmed. But still it was hard not to be intimidated by the gazes of the three adults watching the child intently, as they waited in the small plain room. They didn't look angry, exactly. But there was no warmth or regard for the child in those hard eyes. They watched like hawks, as if waiting for some violent outburst from the youngster.**

**But, the child did its best to hold on to its composure, as they waited. At last, they were joined by an officious looking man.**

**"What precisely happened today?" he said in a icy voice.**

**"T-they were teasing me... making fun of my skin, and I..." speaking was becoming difficult, with the memories of the event threatening to intrude. "I never meant to hurt them, I swear!" **

**"It seems that all the other children will recover, as none of them were seriously injured. The property damage caused by this ... outburst was quite extensive, however."**

**"I know... I didn't mean for it to happen..."**

**"It will be attended to. For now, it has been decided that you shall be sent home to your guardian. She will decide how to deal with this situation."**

**"I understand." With those words, the child was led away, still being watched closely by the adults.**

* * *

Beastboy rubbed his eyes, as he drifted back to wakefulness. 

_Man, what is with all the weird dreams lately? That one made almost no sense at all._

The green boy sat up on the couch, and yawned.

_Must have drifted off after Rob called in. Looks like I was out for an hour or so._ Cy and the girls should be coming in shortly.

Beastboys' thought proved precient, as the elevator door opened, and Cyborg entered followed by Starfire and a weary-looking Raven.

"Raven, are you alright?" He exclaimed, rushing to her side, concern etched on his face.

"I'm fine. Just a little wore out. Guess I'm still not quite in top form," she said, rubbing her temple with one hand. "I caught a nap on the way home, but I seem to have a bit of a headache."

"Hey why don't you go up to your room and lay down a while? I'll bring you up some tea, and you can relax."

"That's alright. I don't want to be a bother..."

"No bother at all!" Beastboy said brightly. "Now go on, and I'll have the tea ready in a bit."

"...Ok," Raven mumbled, and shuffled off to her room.

Cyborg was making his way to the exit as well. "I think I'll go try to patch myself up a bit. Give me a shout if Robin gets back before I'm done," he said.

"Gotcha, Cy. Call me if you need any help." Beastboy replied as he made his way to the kitchen, followed closely by Starfire.

"May I be of assistance in preparing the beverage for Raven?" she asked.

"Sure, uhhh... Could you grab the tea kettle out of the top cabinet? I'm kinda too short to reach it."

As Starfire retrieved the teapot, Beastboy reached into another cabinet, where the teacups were kept. As he set the cups on the countertop and began rummaging around in the pantry for Raven's tea, the Tamaranean girl spoke.

"I think that it is wonderful that you are so considerate of Raven."

He smiled. "Thanks. It's the least I can do for her." He set the the tea aside, and took the kettle from Starfire, and moved to the sink to fill it with water. "Oh, could you get the sugar, too? She likes a little bit in her tea," he said as he set the kettle on the hot stove.

"I see... and you? I notice that you have set two teacups out."

"Oh, uh, yeah... I thought I'd try some, too."

Starfire smiled brightly. "It is good that you are sharing things with each other, now."

Something in her tone caught his ear. "Hm?"

"Well it is obvious that you care for each other very much. Perhaps this is a good opportunity for you to become closer to her."

Beastboy suddenly felt slightly nervous about the direction this conversation was going in. "I'm... not sure what you mean, Star..."

"What? Do you not have feelings for each other?"

"Well, uh... umm..."

"I merely thought that it was obvious, after I saw you two on the shore this morning."

"Y-you saw that?"

"Yes. "

"I-I don't know what you think it was, Starfire, but it wasn't what it looked like."

"It looked like two people, sharing their hearts with each other. Am I mistaken?" she asked, knowing the answer already.

"It's... it's really complicated..." he replied, feeling the blood rush to his face in embarassment.

"No, I do not think it is. You earth people make things complicated, that do not need to be so. It is all very simple to me. You do care for her, correct?" she looked at him very directly, her green eyes intent.

Caught in that gaze, there was no way Beastboy could deny it. "...Yes," he said quietly. "But, what about her? I mean, there's no way she could care about me, right?" He laughed derisively. "I mean, c'mon... it's silly to think that she could... like me, isn't it?"

"There is nothing silly about it, Beastboy. It is obvious that to me that she has warm feelings in her heart for you."

"Warm feelings? _Raven_?"

"Of course! Consider this: would she have allowed you to touch her, to be so close to her, on the shore this morning, if she did not?"

"Well I suppose so..." he stammered out lamely.

"And she also spoke to you yesterday. And when you were struggling with your inner Beast before, she went to you then, did she not?"

"Uh, yeah... wait, you know about that?"

"Naturally. She told me of it. She is my best friend. It is only natural that we should share these things." Starfire seemed to lose herself in thought for a moment. "Truly, she does seem to speak of you quite a bit..." she noted.

"S-she talks about me?" Beasboy sqeaked out, scarcely able to speak.

"Indeed. You seem to be much on her mind."

"I didn't realize that..."

"We Tamaraneans see much that others do not. We are very in touch with our emotions. If you feel so strongly for Raven, you should tell her so. As I said, it is simple."

Beastboy sighed. "You make it sound easy."

She shook her head. "Simple and easy are not one and the same. The simple things are usually the most difficult." She smiled reassuringly at him. "Do not be afraid to tell her how you feel. You are most brave in battle; you can be brave in love as well."

Beastboy smiled. "Never had you pegged as a philosopher, Star."

She laughed. "Perhaps I have spent too much time with Raven." A whistle from the stove alterted them that the water had come to a boil.

"Guess that's my cue, " the changeling remarked as he retrieved the kettle, and set it on a tray with the other paraphenalia.

"Are you going to tell her, then?" Starfire asked.

"I... think so. eventually. I just want to take my time with this..."

"Do not take too long. " she said seriously. "Sometimes it is good to be bold."

"I'll keep that in mind." He picked up the tray and started over to the elevator. He paused. "Thanks Starfire."

"You are most welcome, friend!" she said, her smile larger than ever.

* * *

As Gizmo arrived back at the makeshift hideout he shared with Mammoth, he saw a flashing light on his computer terminal, indicating that someone was trying to contact him. 

_Gilgamesh, _he thought to himself.No one else had the ability to contact him here, anyway. As he logged on, the first message popped up on the screen.

_GILGAMESH: Has Mammoth returned from his task yet?_

_GIZMO: Doesn't look like it._

_GILGAMESH: Did you retrieve the necessary items?_

_GIZMO: Yeah...not that I understand what you intend to do with them. Wasn't easy, though. The Titans showed up._

_GILGAMESH: Understaniding is not required on your part. Only obediance. And you're not being paid for easy. If we are successful, the Titans will not prove to be an impediment much longer._

_GIZMO: ...Whatever. What do you want me to do now?_

_GILGAMESH: I need you to hack into the Titans computer again. I need information._

_GIZMO: Ok... what sort of information? I got you everything I could on Beastboy earlier._

_GILGAMESH: I need the current data on the security measures at Titans' Tower._

_GIZMO: Security at the Tower? You aren't seriously considering breaking into Tower, are you?_

_GILGAMESH: Quite so. The time has come to assault the Titans where they least expect it. On their home ground._

TO BE CONTINUED...

Authors' Notes:

This was quite far and away the hardest chapter to write yet. And all the other real-life adversity, (such as computer viruses,) sure didn't help much. And like I said, this wasn't Beta-ed, so I'll have to apologize for any grammatical errors. I miss my word processor...

Anyway, It's good to finally be back, and I'm sorryfor the somewhat "dry" nature of this chapter, but there were a few things that I absolutely had to set in motion.

Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed the last chap, and I hope that you'll all be so kind as to leave a review this time 'round, as well. Every review you guys send helps me be that much better of a writer. Hope to see you again next chapter!

Regards,

The Doctor

20 November 2005


	7. Reciprocity

AKNOWLEGEMENTS:

First off, I had to post this twice, because fanfiction dot net decided to screw with me.

Grrr...

Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed the previous chapter. I tried to respond to as many of you as I could; if I forgot you, my apologies. I'll do better next time

I also wish to thank CalliopeMused, who Co-authored a portion of this chapter. She continues to amaze me.

And although, once again, I couldn't really have this beta'd, due to my ongoing comp problems. I still need to thank Vixx, for just being so darn cute, if nothing else.

* * *

Chapter 7: Reciprocity

"Raven? Raven?" Beastboy called through the door to Ravens room. He shifted one of his hands out from under the tray he was carrying to knock softly on the smooth metal surface. "Raven, I brought you some tea, are you up?"

"I am _now_," came an irritated voice from inside.

"Oh, uh... maybe now's not a great time, huh? I'll just go and-"

"No, I'm up, might as well not waste it," Ravens' voice was barely audible. "Come in. Touch _nothing_."

As the portal slid open, Beastboy took a tentative step inside, scanning the dim chamber that the empath made her home in. Ravens' inner sanctum always gave Beastboy the creeps, he had to admit. To his left, a massive bookself sat festooned with ancient-looking tomes. A sinister sculpture leered at him as he passed. The shades were drawn over the large east-facing window on the right side of the room. The only scant illumination came from lamps suspended from the ceiling. His sensitive nose was filled with the smell of old books and incense, the scents he always associated with his teammate.

And that temmate currently laid on her bed, still fully clad in her cloak, leotard and boots, with a pillow over her head.

"R-Rave? Are you alright? Are you sick, or something?"

A groan came from her. "Do I look alright to you?" The blue cloaked girl pulled the pillow from over her head and looked at him with bloodshot, bleary eyes. "I overextended myself, protecting the team from Gizmo," she said. "I get migraine headaches sometimes when that happpens."

"Well, umm, I brought you your favorite herbal tea," the green boy said as he sat the serving tray down on her nightstand. "You take yours with one teaspoon of sugar, right?" he asked.

"That's right." she said with some surprise. "That's pretty observant."

"I've seen you make it plenty of times," he said self-deprecatingly. "I was bound to pick it up eventually." he filled her mug and added the proper portion of sugar, and handed the beverage to her.

She raised the cup to her lips, and took a sip. "Not too bad," she noted, "But next time don't let it steep so long, it gets a little bitter."

"I'll have to remember that," Beastboy said as he took the second cup off of the tray. Raven looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I, uh, thought I might try the stuff myself," he said as he poured himself a cup and added a teaspoon of sugar, "You don't mind, do you?"

She sook her head, grimacing and fingertips to her temple as she did. "Go ahead," she muttered.

Beastboy took a gulp of the dark liquid, and had to fight the urge to spit it out immediately, as the bitter taste flooded his mouth. "Pretty good," he gasped, after forcing himself to swallow. He reached for the spoon and added several more spoons of sugar.

"It's an acquired taste," Raven said, with a hand still pressed to her forehead.

"Raven, are you sure I can't get you anything to make you feel better?" He said, seeing how much discomfort she was in.

She seemed to think a moment. "Very well. In the top right drawer of my dresser, there's a bottle of ibuprofin. You could get that for me." She looked at him with hard eyes. "My mirror is on top of the dresser. Do _not_ touch it, or anything else." She laid back down and tightly closed her eyes.

"Okay!" he said, happy to be of help. He spung to his feet, and hurried over to the dresser. Looking over it, he noted that it wasn't cluttered with the typical teenage girl paraphenalia, not that Raven was in any way a typical girl. He saw the aforemetioned mirror, and quickly looked away, willing himself not to touch it.

_Rae definitely wouldn't welcome a houseguest in her head, especially with a screaming headache_.

His eyes moved on, and noticed his fathers' journal sitting nearby. "Huh, I see you still have my dads' book," he noted.

"Yeah, I meant to give it back to you today, but I forgot. You can go ahead and take it with you."

He looked at the small black book musingly. "Nah, you can have it."

"You want me to keep it? Why?" she asked surprised.

He looked back at her, and noted her sitting up in bed, looking at him strangely. "It's kinda like what we talked about this morning," he said. "I've held on to the past too long."

She continued to look at him, and nodded. "Alright. I'll take care of it for you, I promise." Her face then twisted up in pain, and she buried her face back in her pillow with a groan. "And those pills would be a good idea right about now. My head feels it's about to explode."

"Coming up!" he said brightly. He opened the top left drawer of her dresser and looked into it, and immediately froze at the sight of an arsenal of lacy black feminine undergarments. All rational thought ceased as he stared, transfixed, feeling blood rushing to his face.

"Beastboy. Pills. Now."

Beastboy almost leapt several feet into the air as the half-demon girls' monotone voice shocked him from his reverie. Quickly looking back behind him, she saw that she was still shielding her eyes with her pillow.

_Ok, she didn't see, thank goodness. I might actually live through this..._

He slid the illicit drawer shut quietly, so as not to alert her, and opened the drawer next to it. Seeing the small plastic bottle, he quickly grabbed it and ran back to her bedside. "Sorry I took so long. They had rolled to the back, and I kinda had to seach for them," he said, hoping he sounded convincing. He struggled with the child-proof cap for a moment, and fished out two of the small white pills. "Here ya go."

The suffering girl pulled her head out from under her pillow and took the offered medication, swallowing them with a sip of her tea. She then held her now empty cup out to him. "Could you refill this, please? Caffiene helps painkillers work faster." As he took the cup from her, she looked at him closely. "Are you sure you're feeling alright? You look a little flushed..."

"What? Me? Yeah, I'm right as rain!" he gushed with a smile, still feeling his face burning.

She looked at him suspiciously for a moment, then shook her head. "Whatever."

"I never knew that you could get this way, because of your powers," Beastboy said, as he refilled her empty cup, and handed it back to her.

"It dosen't happen as often as it used to, but I'm still not totally back to normal after being roughed up by Mammoth, so I just wore myself out. My powers are linked to my physical condition, but not as much as yours are."

He nodded. "Yeah. If I change too many times too quickly, or if I stay in a really big animal form for too long, I get tired, and kinda sore."

She was silent for a moment, then spoke quietly. "When I was in your memories last night, I felt what it was like when you change. It really... hurt."

"Yeah. It does." he said with a nod.

"You mean it still does? I had thought that maybe it got better as you got older, or something. I've never heard you complain about it."

"No, it still does. I just got used to it, is all. When I change into things close to my own size, I barely notice it anymore. Now, the T-Rex still makes me wince a bit." He smiled a little. "But it's not a big deal. I mean, it only hurts a sec. And it's not like you ever shared how much your powers can take out of you, either."

She took another sip, and nodded. "I don't think that any of us like to admit things like that, even Starfire. No one likes being weak."

"Nah. Besides, when I was in the Doom Patrol, complaining about being sore or something would just get me a stern look from Mento. He was always telling me to 'be a man,' and preaching about having endurance, and stuff."

She looked back at him with curiosity. "I knew you were in the Doom Patrol, but you've never really talked about it. Was it that bad?"

He mused quietly to himself. "I don't know if you could say it was _bad_," he said, "But it wasn't the same as the Titans are. I mean, I learned a lot while I was with them, but... I could never talk to them the way I talk to you guys. The Patrol were real gung-ho about fighting villains, and I'll always respect them, but the five of us weren't... close, like how I feel about you and the other Titans." He thought for a moment. "Except Elasti-girl. Rita was always real nice to me. She was the closest thing I had to a mom, after my parents died."

"That's nice to hear." Raven said. She smiled slightly. "And you're right about the Titans. You and the others are like family to me. I was really fortunate that I ran into you four all those years ago." She let out a short laugh. "Listen to me, I'm starting to get mushy. I must _really_ be ill."

Beastboy smiled at her. "Don't sweat it. It's nice to see you this way." He paused for a moment, unsure of what he was about to say. "This morning, on the shore... it got real... intense, didn't it?"

"Yes, it did." she replied, her eyes looking at her hands, as she toyed with her teacup idly.

"I'm glad you did it, though. I mean, sharing all that stuff with me. You don't regret it, do you?" he asked in a small voice.

She looked up at him, her indigo eyes softer than ususal. "No. I'm glad I did it. It felt good to trust someone, after all this time. And I'm glad you trusted me, as well."

Their eyes locked for a long moment, and he suddenly felt embarassed, as though she were looking right into him. He blushed slightly, and looked away.

"I should probably try to get some rest," she said at last. "That should take care of the worst of my headache." She handed the teacup to him. "Thanks, Beastboy. It was really nice of you to do this."

"Anytime, Raven." he said with a gentle smile, as he gathered up the dishes.

She yawned. "Wow, guess I really am tired. She laid her head down and shut her eyes. "Beastboy?" she said in a small tired voice.

"Yeah?"

"You do know that if I ever catch you in my underwear drawer again, I'll give you the mother of all beatings, right?"

"I'd expect that," he said, his face flushing once again. Then he chuckled. "I'll have to make sure you don't catch me, next time."

"Alright then, just so long as you understand that. Good night," she said sleepily

"Good night, Raven" He said. As he picked up the tray, he took a long look at her face. Sleep had taken away it's customary hard-edged defensiveness, and gave her a soft, angelic cast. He noticed a comforter folded across the foot of the bed. Gently he took it and stretched it over her sleeping form. He took up the tray, and gave her one last look.

"Sweet dreams, Rae." he turned quietly slipped out of the room.

* * *

Jinx sighed. _This is getting really old, really fast,_ she thought to herself. _Oh well, let's find out how much longer the Boy Blunder wants to play..._

She had spent the better part of two hours being interrogated by Robin, who now stood before her imposingly, as she sat indolently on the cot that was, apart from a small end table, the only furinishing in the holding cell she was being kept in. But all things considered, Jinx had been in worse places. It was certainly the cleanest cell she'd ever been in, she'd observed idly.

"Let's try this _again_, Jinx," the Titans' leader said with weariness evident in his voice. "Why did Gizmo break into S.T.A.R. Labs?"

"Ummm, I dunno..." the pink-haired sorceress drawled. Then her eyes went wide. "Oh wait - I think I know! To steal something! Am I right, am I right?" she squealed with mock enthusiasm.

She was gratified to see Robin's jaw clentch in annoyance. It was petty, certainly, to take pleasure in irritating the him so, but then, with her hands still bound by cuffs linked to a belly chain, preventing her from using her magic, there wasn't much else she could do.

"Yes, Jinx. He stole stole something. Some experimental medical equipment. I already told you that," he said with exaggerated patience. "Now, what I need to know is why he would take something like that. What possible use would he have for medical tech?"

Jinx could feel her own irritation rising. "How many times do I have to tell you? _I don't know!_ We've been over this. Maybe he's going to sell it, or something."

Robins' eyes bored into her relentlessly. "Really. Is that what the top students at the _HIVE Academy for Extraordinary Young People _have been reduced to? Petty theft? Fencing stolen technology? I'm not buying it," he said flatly.

"That's _former_ top students at the HIVE," she corrected. "You pretty much ended that chapter of our careers when you Titans dismantled Brother Blood. The HIVE is dead. And we had get by how we could. Unlike you suck-ups, we don't get handouts from the City Council. So, yeah, we're petty thieves now. It sucks, but it's a living."

Robin leaned in closer to her. "But if that's the case, then there has to be a buyer, or a client, or someone who gave Gizmo this job. The items he took were pretty specific; he broke in, took only a few certain pieces, and didn't filch anything else. So I think he did this on assignment from an outside party."

Jinx smirked at him. "Wow. You sure have an incredible grasp of the obvious, Robin," she taunted. "Looks like all that time you spent with the Dark Knight Detective really paid off. Good for you."

Robins' clenched fists were her reward for her insult. It was clearly taking every ounce of this self control to keep from snapping. He took a deep breath and spoke slowly. "Jinx, all I want is to know who you've been working for lately. Names, addresses, contact info, anything. You know, we could pull some strings for you, when you have to face the courts. We might even be able to get your sentence reduced, if you co-operate," he offered. "Help us, and we'll help you."

The young witch pretended to think it over for a moment, the replied, "No, thanks."

"What? Why not?"

"It's nothing personal, Robin. I just don't like you, that's all," she replied. She paused a moment. "Oh wait, that _is_ personal. Sorry." she said sweetly.

A vein was now visibly pulsing in the masked boys' forehead, much to her satisfaction.

Robin now looked close to an explosion, but before it could happen, the door to the cell slid open with a hiss, and Cyborg entered, carrying a covered tray.

"Hey Robin," Cyborg nodded to him, "I brought our 'guest' some dinner."

"Cyborg, now's not a good time. I'm trying to interrogate her."

"_Trying_ being the operative word, here. It's obvious she's not going to talk. Why don't you take a breather?"

Robin opened his mouth to protest. "But-"

"Starfire's going to be sad if you don't join her for dinner," the half-robotic Titan observed.

Robin sighed. "I guess a break might be a good idea," he said finally.

Cyborg smiled. "Definitely! She's waiting for ya in the kitchen. And don't worry... I did all the cooking."

Robin nodded, and left, the electronic lock on the door clicking shut as it closed behind him.

"Heh, he always falls for that," Cyborg said with a snicker.

"So, the red-head isn't waiting for him upstairs?" Jinx asked.

"Not specifically; I just wanted to get him to leave. But she'll still be more than happy to see him. She usually is."

"Ahhh... Young Love..." she sighed theatrically, "I think I'm gonna be sick," she added mildly.

Cyborg laughed. "That's too bad, because I seem to remember that Tandoori Chicken is your favorite. Am I right?"

Jinxs' stomach spoke for her, with a shockingly loud growl.

"Ok, guess I was," he said with a smile as he set the tray down on the small table next to her bed, and removed the cover. He looked at her critically. "Hold out your hands," he commanded. She held her hands up as much as the short chain between her cuffs and the belly hain would allow. He produced a key from a compartment that opened on his arm, and removed her restraints. "Figured it'd be a little hard for ya to eat, with those on."

Jinx rubbed her now-unrestrained wrists. "Huh, that's a lot of trust there, hero."

Cyborg nodded. "Glad you think so, but just so you know, the Tower computer is set to monitor my physical condition while I'm in here with you. If anything happens to me, this cell will be flodded with sleep gas, and the others will be alerted. I mean, I like ya, kid, but I know you too well to trust you _that _much."

"Huh, you think you know me?"

"A little. We spent a a lot of time together at the H.I.V.E."

"You don't know me near as well as you think. Computer or no, what's to stop me from just taking you out, and tearing out of this cell before your pals were in sight? I can do it, you know." It was a lie. She wasn't that powerful. She had already determined the walls were too thick to simply blow through. She could use her Hex powers to corrode them, but that would take time. Still, it felt good to bluster.

Cyborg nodded. "Maybe. But I'm thinking you're smarter than that. That would bring way too much heat for you to handle, without your partners around."

"Whatever." She set the tray in her lap, and gave the food an experimental prod with her fork, looking slightly distrustful.

"You should know poisioning food isn't my style, Jinx," Cyborg said.

"Yeah, from what I remember from your days at the academy, you're more basic martial arts, with a bit of street fighting on the side."

"Good eye."

Jinx popped a morsel in her mouth. "You didn't use enough curry," she said critically. Criticism didn't stop her from tearing into the meal like a starving animal.

He smiled. "I'll have you know that cooking is my real talent. This crimefighting gig is just a hobby." He sat down next to her on the bed. Normally she'd make some snide comment at this sort of familiarity, but she was just too hungry to care.

"Huh. So, do you heroes have to sell your souls to Wonder Woman for that talent, or what? I'm not sure how it goes on the other side of the fence."

"I've met Wonder Woman, a few times," he remarked. "She has quite the presence, but she seemed nice. Just don't tick her off; I've seen her fight. That's a tough lady."

"Gotta love the Girl Power," she said, before taking a drink of soda. "Well, it seems that your shapshifter friend does, at any rate. Looks like all those rumors back at the academy were true. We actually had a pool on those two, you know. On just how long it would take them to hook up."

Cyborg stared at her, then shook his head. "Ok, so, how come you saw this, and me and Robin didn't?"

"I don't know how you missed it. I mean, he was like her little green shadow, every time you guys fought us. And she always seemed to be around to teleport him out of the way, whenever he was about to get clobbered. What more do you need to tell you there's something there?"

He threw up his hands. "I guess. Still seems like a strange couple, though. It'll be weird dealing with the whole intra-team hookup thing."

"I wouldn't know. Gizmo is obsessed with finding a busty, leggy blonde, not much taller then himself, that has a thing for technology. He won't listen to us, when we tell him how impossible that is. And Mammoth," she rolled her eyes, "lets just say he lacks taste. Or intelligence. Or charm, or basic hygene. Actually, he lacks a lot of things. So, naturally, he thinks he's Casanova, and hits on pretty much every girl that crosses his path. He even made a pass at me once. I set him straight, and he even apologised, almost before the bleeding stopped." She set down her fork, and wiped her mouth demurely with her napkin.

Cyborg looked at her now empty plate. "Must not have been _that _bad," he noted.

"Beats bread and water, at any rate," she said as she set the tray aside, and sat pointedly ignoring him.

"So, Rob was grillin' ya pretty hard there, huh?" Cyborg said after a moment of silence.

Jinx shot him a glare. "Oh, I get it now... You're playing the role of 'Good Cop' today, is that it?" she said with some heat.

The Titan was shaking his head. "It's not like that, Jinx, honest. I-"

"'Honest?' That's quite the word for you to say around me," she said, feeling her temper rise. This was unlike her. She shouldn't be getting so worked up about this. Getting angry wasn't going to help her get out of her current situation, after all. But, for some reason, the memory of being decieved by a supposed comrade and friend still stung her more that she cared to admit. "And why should I trust you, anyways?"

He sighed. "Yeah, well... I suppose I had that coming," he said in a glum voice. "But I'm trying to help you out, here! No games. I mean, we were kinda like... friends, or something, once."

She made an indelicate sound. "Yeah, 'kinda like,' " she mocked. "What a joke."

Cyborg closed his human eye, and bowed his head, as if in thought. After a moment, he spoke. "Yes, it's true. I lied to you, about my identity. But the friendship was completely honest. I really enjoyed a lot of the time I spent with you, at the H.I.V.E."

Jinx looked at him searchingly. She _wanted_ to believe him, she had to admit that to herself, at least, if no one else. Gizmo, Mammoth, and the others at the HIVE were her collegues, rather than friends. And during all her time at the Academy, 'Stone' was the only boy she'd felt anything more than professional respect for.

Shunting her reverie aside, Jinx shot him a glare. "I enjoyed my time with _Stone,_ Cyborg. But he was a ruse, just a figment of your imagination. Do you realize how that makes me feel?"

He sighed. "No, Jinx, I don't. I'll admit that. And for the record, I'm more than a little ashamed of the whole thing. I'm not proud of having to lie that way. But it had to be done, even though part of me wishes I wasn't the one to do it.

"But on the other hand, if I hadn't done it, I never would have had the chance to see you as anything more than a criminal. And I really liked being your friend, even if it was only for a little while. I wouldn't trade that for anything." Cyborg was looking directly at her now,and sincerity shown in his eye. "And it hasn't all been a lie, y'know... in more ways than you know, 'Stone' _is_ me. Or at least, the part of him that was your friend is." He looked away from her, and let out a deep sigh, as if exhausted. "Just thought you should know that." He turned, and started to the door.

"Wait." She even surprised herself, when she said it. He stopped, and turned to face her.

She stared at her empty plate, not meeting his eyes. "We've been working for someone who calls himself 'Gilgamesh,' lately. I don't have a whole lot of information; Gizmo made all the contacts over a private messaging program on his computer. But, I can give you the net addess he contacted. I stole it, in case I had to cut my own deal with him, on the side."

"No honor among thieves after all, huh?"

"None at all."

"Thank you, Jinx. But now I have to ask, why tell me this?"

The captive sorceress laid back on her cot, and rested her head on her hands, staring at the ceiling. "Truth is, I don't know, myself. Maybe I'm just still ticked at Gizmo and Mammoth for leaving me high and dry, or something." She looked at him now, with narrowed eyes. "Your turn: why are you being nice to me?"

The half-robotic boy shrugged his shoulders. "Dunno, honestly. I guess that I still feel bad about how we parted, when the Titans took the Academy down. I don't like loose ends. Just running off likeI did felt wrong, for some reason." He laughed a little nervously, "Fact is, you're the closest thing I've had to a girlfriend."

She smirked. "Oh. really?"

"Y-yeah. I mean, we went to that dance at the Academy, and all. That was like the last date I've had."

"What, girls not looking for a high-tech knight in shining armour these days?"

"Well, let's be honest, I don't look like a normal guy."

Jinx rolled her eyes. "Look at who you're talking to. Besides..." she rose from the bed and sauntered over to him, her eyes locked on his face. She walked up closet to him, stood on tiptoes and looked at him very directly. She noted with some satisfaction that he seemed to be a little breathless.

"...I've seen worse," she said with a hint of a smile.

Cyborg swallowed deeply, seemingly frozen in place like a deer in headlights. "Thanks."

She laughed a little wickedly, turned and returned to her bed, and laid back down."So, you gonna bring me all my meals now, or what?"

"I could bring you something a little later, if you'd like," he soundedrather eager.

"I'll be sure to be here," she said drily. "On that note..." she picked up the handcuffs and dangled them from one finger, "Guess I should put these back on."

Cyborg started toward her, then stopped. "Nah, Keep 'em off, for now."

"How sweet."

The Titan actually managed to look bashful. "Not really. It's just that even if you managed to break out of this cell, you'd still have to get through the five of us. I think you're smarter than that."

Her smile was sly. "We'll see, won't we?" She yawned, and stretched catlike. "Think I'll take a nap." She dismissed him with a flippant little wave of her hand. "See you later, hero," she said before closing her eyes.

"Yeah, later. " he replied absently.

Her eyes still closed, she heard him collect the dishes and slip out the door.

_What a dork,_ she thought._ He's obviosly not the resident ladies' man around here. Poor guy looked like he was about to short-circuit, when I walked up to him. Gotta admit, though, it was nice of him to leave the cuffs off. Maybe not the smartest thing to do on his part, but nice, anyway._

Indeed, Cyborg had treated her with consideration, even while masquerading as a student at the HIVE. Being a teenage girl, Jinx had grown accustomed to the loutish behavior that seemed to be almost universal to teenage boys. The fact that all the boys she knew were also aspiring to a life of crime probably didn't help matters much. Villains didn't respect anyone, usually, each other least of all. But right from the start, 'Stone' was diffrent. Jinx had already chastised herself for not seeing this as a sign of treachery to come, but one tends not to see what one doesn't want to see.

_Agh, this is so stupid. I mean, I spent hours resisting Bird-Boys' questions, and then Cyborg comes in and gives me a little snack, and I cave all of a sudden. Stupid hero... This would be so much easier if I could hate him._

_And I should hate him! He lied to me, and took advantage of me, to help bring down the only group I've ever felt loyalty to._

_So why don't I hate him?_

Jinx actually wish Robin would return and question her some more. It was far easier to deal with snotty heroes than her own troubling thoughts.

* * *

Robin exited the elevator, trying to shed the last of the stress he was carrying from the attempted questioning of Jinx. Try as though he might, he found himself unable to understand the mind of his opponents. He just could not get how a criminal could be so obstinate, when in a situation such as hers. Escape was hopeless; by co-operating, she could at least make things easier for her, and yet, she still resisted. It made no sense to him. But then, inablility to get into the heads of criminals was a failing of his; his mentor had even told him so. It caused him to miss things that he shouldn't. 

In truth, he was missing many things, he ruefully admitted. Such as Beastboy; knowing what he knew now, his behavior made much sense. All the jokes and humor had served as armor for him, all these years, much as Robin's relentless perfectionism served him.

_It's strange to think that we could have had so much in common, being orphans and all, and yet be so diffrent. Wonder if I could have ended up more like him, if my upbringing was diffrent._

He shook his head as he made his way to the kitchen. _And if Starfire is correct, He 'likes' Raven? I must really not be paying attention._

He entered the kitchen and found the alien girl seated at the table in the dining area, looking critically at a plate of food.

"Hey Starfire, what are you having?"

"Cyborg tells me it is called Tandoori Chicken." She took a bite, and frowned a bit. "It is not unpleasent, but it would be better with mustard." She smile at him as he took a seat. "Would you care to try some?"

"No thanks, Star. Indian food is not a favorite of mine, and I'm not feeling too hungry at the moment, anyway." He let out a sigh, and smiled at her."But some friendly conversation would be nice right now."

"I am always happy to provide that, Robin," she said happily, "And you do look somewhat disturbed."

"I just got done interrogating Jinx, or trying to, anyway."

"It did not go to your liking?"

"Not a bit," he admitted. "All I got out of her were insults. I just can't see how to get anything else out of her."

"You will find the answer, that I do not doubt," she assured him. "You are one of the most perceptive people I have ever met."

"You sure?" he asked ruefully, "I seem to be missing alot lately."

"Such as?"

"Well, I let us get our butts kicked by Gizmo today. If it wasn't for Raven, it would have been real bad out there."

"Truly, but that is what teammates do." She looked at him very directly. "You cannot fight all battles by yourself, Robin. I know that being a leader means much to you, but, you cannot expect to be perfect. You always expect so much of yourself, but you cannot see, know, or do everything."

"I always want to do everything I can," he admitted, "and I hate to be beaten. You know how I get." He sighed, and decided to change the subject; he didn't want to load his problems on the cheerful girl. "How's Raven?"

"She seemed to be most tired, and suffering from an ache of the head," she replied. "She went to her room, and Beastboy is taking some of the tea she enjoys so much to her."

Robin decided to ask her about something he'd been wondering about. "You said yesterday that you noticed that Beastboy might be...'interested' in Raven. Out of curiosity, how long do you think he's felt this way?"

"Quite some time now," she replied, and smiled. "He has tried hard to keep his feelings out of sight, but I first noticed it when she was involved with that creature from the book."

"That dragon, you mean? Now that I think of it, he did act a little different around her for a while. Didn't try to wrangle her into playing Gamestation for at least a week. I should have seen that, too."

"With these matters, it isn't a matter of 'seeing' with ones eyes," Starfire said. "The eyes can miss things like that," she paused, "even when they are right before you." She had an intent look on her face, and Robin found himself tranfixed by her intensity.

He looked away, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. "I wish that I understood what you were talking about, Starfire, I really do, but I've never been very good with those sorts of things. I just don't have that gift."

"It is not a 'gift', Robin," she said, her eyes still fixed on him. "We Tamaraneans are just accustomed to dealing with emotional matters. Our feelings are plain, and we do not disguise them." She paused now, and looked slightly uncomfortable momentarily, before continuing. "That is why you confuse me so, Robin."

"Me?"

"Yes. You conceal yourself from your friends, and that is frustrating to me," she said. "I am not always certain how you are feeling. Such behavior is unknown to me."

"I-I..." He suddenly felt very off-balance. "I'm sorry about that. I don't mean to upset you, Starfire. I just don't want to burden you guys with my problems."

"It is the place of friends to stand with each other and to help each other with their problems. Raven and Beastboy are starting to understand this."

Robin's stomach was practically in his throat. "Maybe... maybe I could..." He took a deep breath, and started again. "Maybe I could learn to do that, too?" he said in a rush.

Starfire's smile was like the sun rising. "I am certain you could."

"I'm going to... need help with this," his heart was pounding so hard it almost hurt.

"I can help you start...if you like."

"I'd like that very much. What do I do?"

She moved her chair closer to his, keeping her eyes on his. "We shall start easy. How do you feel about... me?"

"I-" his throat felt as though it was filled with desert sand. "I like you Starfire. I really do. I-I like you alot. As a friend, and... more"

_Way to go, Robin,_ an inner voice chastised him. _Real smooth._

"That makes me most happy, Robin," she said, as she rose to her feet. "And my feelings are much the same."

He rose to his feet without thinking. "That makes _me_ very happy. What should I do now?"

"On your planet, it seems to be customary for the male to ask the female to share a meal with him."

"You mean... a date?" He almost squeaked.

"I believe that is the term."

"Ummm... Okay, would you like to go out tomorrow night? Any particular place you like?"

"Anywhere is fine, I am far from particular.As I recall Cyborg said that there was a new Italian restaurant in the eastern portion of the city that was very nice. That would be fine."

"Great!" he said, unable to contain his excitement. "Umm... tomorrow night good?"

She beamed even wider. "It is perfect."

"Umm... I guess that we've got a date, then." He could scarcely believe it, even though he just said it.

"Indeed." She reached out, put her arms around him. Robin had been hugged by the Tamaranean girl before, but this wasn't her usual bone-crushing embrace. This was gentle, warm, and intimate. He found himself returning the gesture without thought. Forgetting all the stress of the last two days, he felt better than he had in ages.

She pulled back from him and smiled. "Did you not see how easy that was?"

* * *

******"Follow me."**

**The child trailed the officious-looking man down the long, cold hallway, eyes cast down to the floor. Lost within a haze of roiling emotions, the wary looks of the few people they past were barely noticed. Such looks were commonplace, in any case, for the child.**

**They came at last to a large, solid-looking wood door, which the man opened. "Enter," he said coldly.**

**As the child entered, the door closed behind. The room was large, but sparsely furnished. a fireplace occupied the far wall, with a chair and table near a window in close proximity. In the chair, gazing out the window sat a well-dressed woman with long, ebony-black hair, and large blue eyes. Her features were fine, even beautiful, but she radiated an air of coldness and sorrowthat permeated everything around her. As she looked out over the city from her window, she held a teacup, from which no steam rose, having evidentally gone cold.**

**The woman turned and regarded the child with her sad eyes. "I heard about what happened today," she said in a quiet monotone, barely audible. **

**"I-I didn't mean..." The childs' eyes found the floor again, not able to meet that cold gaze. "I didn't want to hurt anyone..."**

**"What one _wants _is unimportant****. Only the outcomes matter." The woman set down her teacup, and reached for an elaborately-carved wooden box. Opening it, she drew an item from within it, rose, and approached the nervous youth. **

**"If you are to continue to live here, you must **learn to control your abilities. You are capable of great destruction, even without ill intent. Your very life, and the lives of those around you, depend on you finding dicipline.This shall help you." She presented the object to the child, who recieved it in small, trembling hands.

**"What shall I do?" The child asked, in a frightened voice.**

**"You will go to the temple, where Azar shall personally instruct you. You must be dilligent, if you are to survive the destiny that awaits you. Do you understand?"**

**"Yes mother, I do."**

**The child held the object the woman had presented up. It was an ornately decorated hand mirror of black glass, that seemed to absorb light, rather than reflect it. The child regarded her own reflection in the polished surface, the two amethyst eyes in a ghostly gray face peering back out at her.**

**

* * *

**

Beastboy's eyes flew open, as he shot to wakefulness. The face from his dream was one which he was most familiar with.

"Raven?"

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

AUTHORS' NOTES:

Not much to say this time... things are going to come to a head soon. And yes, I'm glad Jinx is back, too, at last.

See you next time...

Regards,

The Doctor

18 December 2005


	8. Symmetry

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans and associated characters are the property of DC Comics and AOL Time Warner. This story is being written for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being sought and no Copyright infringement is intended.

Acknowledgments:

At long last, my computer functions again! Joy! Once again, I'll be able to communicate fully with you, gentle readers. And my gratitude, as always, to all who read and reviewed the previous chapter.

For this chapter, I have a trio of lovely ladies to thank:

CalliopeMused, ever the faithful friend, who was always there, even throughout the period in which I had only limited contact, providing her thoughts and support. She always kept me going, even when things got real tough. I'm in her debt, as always.

Vixxelinn once again provided her pre-reading services and suggestions, and also managed to lighten the mood, when I was feeling the crunch. Thanks, kiddo, and it's great to be back.

And, last but not least, I wish to dedicate this chapter to my friend and fellow author Kayasuri-n, who was always there by my side, ready with a kind word, and the threat of sudden violence.

Be warned... darkness ahead.

CHAPTER 8: SYMMETRY

The day was dawning bright and clear over Jump City as Raven made her way to the roof of Titan's Tower, one of her customary retreats for meditation. The roof was one of the few places she could usually be assured of a modicum of privacy while trying to quiet her mind. And while her room certainly did provide solitude, there was something about being out of doors that seemed to be calm her. Ascending the short flight of stars that led to the top of the Tower, the dark empath opened the door and walked out onto the sunny rooftop. Despite the bright sun, it was still early enough to be cool outside, which was to Raven's liking. It was difficult to clear one's head when one was bathed in perspiration.

As she walked to her favorite place, facing away from the city, she closed her eyes and allowed herself to relax. As she felt herself begin to float up into the air slightly, she folded her legs beneath her and took deep, cleansing breaths. Eyes still closed, she began the process of 'disconnecting' herself from the world around her. All of the stresses, care, and concerns of the last few days were allowed to slip away as she entered her meditative trance.

_I needed this, badly, _she thought to herself as her mind continued to relax. _Especially after yet another sleepless night._ _As tired as I was, you'd think I wouldn't have tossed and turned the way I did. I'm starting to think that Cyborg will become a vegan before I ever see a good night's sleep again..._

"Raven?"

Her musings were interrupted by Beastboy's voice. She cracked open her eyes and turned to glare in the direction of her teammate, standing behind her. The irritation she felt at being disturbed was stifled by the waves of nervousness she felt coming from the changeling. She had promised to help him, after all. "What's the matter?"

"Something… happened last night," he said, "While I was sleeping. I had a strange dream. Well, actually, I've been having strange dreams for a little while now, but this was… I don't know how to explain it." Raven could feel his anxiety rising as he spoke. Something had him pretty spooked.

"Well, try. I can't help you very much unless you tell me _something_," Raven lowered herself to the ground and stood to face him.

Beastboy shifted nervously. "Ummm… okay, ya see, in the dreams I've been having, I've had this odd sort of feeling like… " he paused, seeming to grope for the proper words, ".. Like I wasn't _me, _if that makes any sense."

"…Okay…"

"It's hard to explain. I was in some sort of unfamiliar place, and the person I was wasn't Beastboy. Like I was living another person's life, or something."

"Alright, I get the idea." Raven thought a moment. "These dreams, were they frightening, like nightmares?"

"Not really," he replied, "They could get kind of intense, but not exactly scary. But that's not exactly the issue here."

"Then what?" She was puzzled. "Who was this person you were, in your dreams?"

The green boy stood staring at her, biting his lower lip worriedly.

"Beastboy?" she said in concern.

He took a deep breath, as if gathering his courage. "A-After last night's dream, I realized what was going on. They weren't dreams, at all. They were memories.

"Your memories, Raven."

She felt as if her heart had tuned to stone. "What?" she gasped.

"I was you… and you were so young, like, just a kid. You were still on Azarath, I guess. There were a bunch of adults around, and they all seemed to be upset with you, about something you did." He paused and closed his eyes. "And I saw your mother."

Raven could only stare at him, mouth slightly agape.

Beastboy continued, "She said something about you needing to learn control, or something. And she gave you that creepy portal-mirror-thing."

Raven lowered her eyes. "Mother…" Her mind hadn't been in such turmoil since her father had tried to use her to destroy the world.

Beastboy looked at her with concern clear on his face. "Raven? Are you all right?"

She could feel her chest tightening as she attempted to choke down all the feelings within her that were threatening to burst forth. She knew that this wasn't his fault, but that didn't make things any easier.

"Raven, talk to me, please!" Beastboy implored. "I want to help you find out what's going on here…" She felt his hand touch her shoulder as he spoke.

She flinched at the contact, and a tendril of black energy leapt forth from her, striking the ground with a loud _bang _several yards away and leaving a small crater in the concrete surface of the roof. Shocked at her momentary lapse of control, Raven backed away from the changeling slowly.

"Rae, it's alright!" Beastboy's voice held a frantic note as she continued to retreat. "We can help each other, can't we?"

Raven felt her mouth working, but the words wouldn't come. She knew she was acting irrationally, but reason had left her. Finally, she was able to speak.

"I-I can't deal with this, not now…" She had drawn her cloak around her, as if she could somehow hide within.

_But it's too late to hide, _a voice within seemed to say to her. _He's seen into your very mind._

Beastboy continued to advance on her. "Raven… please just calm down and let me help you with this!"

Gaining control of her long enough to harness a small portion of her power, Raven spoke to him, as she phased her body through the rooftop.

"You can't help me. I'm sorry…"

His sad face was the last thing she saw as she escaped into the Tower below.

* * *

Raven slid though the ceiling of her room and descended to the floor, barely aware of her surroundings. Feeling numb to her very core, she staggered over to her bed, and sat down, eyes staring at nothing in particular. 

_How did this happen? How did he see? I don't even want to remember growing up, myself, and now Beastboy gets front-row seats. How am I going to deal with this?_

Raven rested her head in her hands as she considered the problem, finding comfort in trying to think her way through her difficulties. Sometimes, it was just easier to think, than to feel. Feelings could be quite dangerous for her, not to mention those around her.

_Oh, Beastboy… _

She couldn't help but remember the crestfallen look on her teammate's face as she fled his presence.

_If I know him half as well as I think I do, he's probably looking for a way to blame himself right now. And none of this is his fault. _

As she continued to consider the situation, a glint of light from an object on her dresser caught her eye.

_No, this is my problem, and I'm going to deal with it. Right now... _

Raven rose to her feet, walked to her dresser, and took up the magical mirror, preparing herself for the journey into her inner realm.

* * *

Wisdom sat in her customary place, beneath the enormous tree within Raven's mind, not meditating for once, but simply thinking. Indeed, the calmness needed for meditation would be difficult for the brown-cloaked mental aspect to achieve, given the recent turmoil within the psyche of the half-demon girl. Since Wisdom was the nexus of all of Raven's emotional aspects, it fell to her to act as a mediator between them whenever a crisis erupted. And after the events of that morning, she had been most busy. 

_Were I a human, I'd need about three aspirin and a nice long nap, right now. They're so much like children, sometimes, not that I can exclude myself from that description. Of course, Raven herself is scarcely more than a child._

Almost as soon as she thought of the empathic girl, a huge wave of black energy, in the shape of a bird, swooped down from the starry skies above, landing on the ground nearby. The dark form collapsed upon itself and vanished, leaving Raven standing before her, a scowl upon her face.

_Indeed, not much more than a child…_

Wisdom sighed. "How disappointing. Just because you're upset doesn't mean you must resort to vulgar displays of power to try to intimidate me."

Raven continued to glare at her. "What's going on in here?"

"Ah, yes, things have been a bit chaotic, lately. Just this morning, I had to diffuse a situation with Rage and Happy. You're wound tight as a guitar string, dear." She thought for a moment. "I've heard that there are decaffeinated teas that taste almost as good as the real thing… perhaps you should look into that," she said nonchalantly.

Wisdom could almost hear Raven's teeth gritting. "I need answers, Wisdom. Beastboy's been seeing into my memories, and I know this must have something to do with me. So, start talking."

Wisdom stood and met her glare with an even gaze. "Not until you take a deep breath and calm down. Really, you should know better that to behave this way. You're just making things harder on everyone in here. I can help you get to the bottom of this, but I need to be sure you won't go off like a bomb first."

Raven frowned even deeper momentarily, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Very well. What's been happening in here? I need to know how Beastboy was able to see into my mind."

"It's all pretty logical, if you think about it. You know how you've been looking into Beastboy's mind, while he sleeps? It seems that he's been simply looking back though this 'window' you've established with him, and seeing your memories in a manner similar to how you've been looking at his. Knowledge told me that this is called Unity, by the mystics of some cultures." Wisdom smiled. "She's evidentially been researching this for some time. Give her a conundrum, and she's like a girl with a new doll."

Raven shook her head. "That doesn't make sense. I've studied Unity links. He shouldn't be able to look back through that sort on link, unless he had psychic abilities of his own. And he doesn't; if he were a latent telepath, I'd have sensed it by now. The onset of those powers is puberty, at the latest."

"True," Wisdom agreed, "A normal person couldn't look back through the link, unless their mind was being drawn in by the psychic that established the link in the first place."

"Wait a minute… you're saying I'm _inviting _him into my head?"

"Pretty much, yes."

"You've got to be kidding," Raven stated flatly. "Why on earth would I do something like that? You know how I don't like people involving themselves in my life. You're _me_, after all."

"You're doing it because you _want_ to, dear. Remember what I said to you when you last came here, about how your mind desired to bring you closer to your friends, especially Beastboy? This is part of that, I'd conjecture. After all, it would hardly be fair for you to simply take things from his mind, and not give in return, now would it? It's like in alchemy: Equivalent Exchange. Nothing can be taken, without something equal being given in return. At least, that's how many of us in here look at it."

Raven's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Is that how _you _look at it?"

Wisdom looked at her, slightly amused. "You should hardly need to ask that question. I am _you_, after all."

The empath sat down at the foot of the tree with a sigh, lowering her hood as she pressed a hand to her forehead wearily. "Whatever. So, now the question is, how do I stop this?"

Wisdom sat next to her, looking at her very intently. "Do you really want to? Do you really want to stop sharing yourself with him? Think about this – all your life, you've wanted someone to understand, someone to listen, and someone to stand by you. You may have that now."

"With Beastboy? You're making it sound like I'm in love with him, or something."

"You're not?" Wisdom asked directly. Raven opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by Wisdom before she could utter a word.

"Think before you answer, dear. You know you can't lie to me."

Raven's mouth hung open a second, then she bowed her head. "I don't know. Possibly. He can be annoying, but he can be nice, as well. It's just… I've never been in that sort of… condition, before. I mean, there was Malchior, but that was-"

"That was infatuation, Raven," Wisdom said firmly. "That's nothing like love. Malchior seemed perfect, because he was lying to you. Beastboy has his faults, but, sometimes, I think we love people in spite of their faults, or in an odd way, maybe even because of them."

Raven spent several moments staring off into the distance, as if lost in thought. Finally she spoke in a quiet voice, almost a whisper.

"I… want to know what that's like. Feeling that way about someone, I mean. And Beastboy… I guess… I like him," she said.

Wisdom smiled warmly. "There. That's what I've been telling you about. Admitting you have feelings is the first step to coming to terms with them. You've been observing life for so long, Raven. It's time for you to live, too."

Wisdom thought for a moment. "I have an idea that might help you. I'll go talk to the other parts of your psyche, and see if maybe we can put an end to the whole 'dream-vision' business that's been going on. This might be easier if you take steps to deal with things on your end."

"Meaning?"

"Talk to him, Raven. If you start sharing things with him of your own accord, then the sharing through Unity may very well cease. It simply won't be necessary any more. Fulfill you desires consciously, and you won't try to do so, unconsciously."

Raven rose to her feet. "I'll try."

Wisdom rose next to her. "That's all that's really necessary. And you'd better get going. No doubt he's off moping right now, and he's had it rough enough lately."

"Alright. Thank you" Raven pulled her hood up and walked away, towards the Forbidden Door.

Wisdom watched her leave then turned back to the tree. "You can come out, now," she said.

"Is she gone?" called a tiny voice from behind the tree.

"Yes, dear. It's okay, now."

Slowly, a gray-cloaked figure crept out from behind the huge trunk, shyly peeking out with huge eyes from beneath her hood. "She's angry, isn't she?" Her voice quavered with fear.

Wisdom put an arm around her sister-aspect. "Raven isn't angry. She was just a little upset, that's all. She doesn't deal with surprises very well.

Timid seemed to calm somewhat, "Alright... so, she's not going to hurt you, for letting Beastboy see into her mind?"

Wisdom smiled. "No, little sister. And even if she was mad, sometimes, the risks are justified by the rewards. Trust me, this will all work out, and she'll thank me later, in any case."

* * *

Night had fallen, and Beastboy paced on the roof of the Tower, unable to shake his unease. Raven hadn't shown for dinner. Which in itself, was not terribly unusual; Raven sometimes would barely make an appearance for days on end. The Titans had learned early on that the empath was profoundly private, and had come to respect that need for solitude. Even Beastboy had, after some blood-curdling threats to his person. They always had dinner around the same time. If she wanted to join them, she would. If not, they didn't take offense. 

This time was different, however. Beastboy had figured she needed space after he had told her of his nocturnal visions, that wasn't surprising. Still, her distress, and her flight from him that morning had alarmed him.

_I thought we were past all that, Raven. All the secrets..._

He had knocked on her door, several hours later, hoping she was calm enough for talk. There was no response, which meant either she was ignoring him, or she had fled somewhere. And if she didn't want to be found, she wouldn't be.

As he paced back and forth on the roof, lost in his musings, a soft voice spoke.

"Beastboy?"

He turned, and saw Raven standing outlined against the lights of the city across the water. Uncharacteristically, her hood was down, showing a nervous look on her delicate features.

"Raven! Are you okay? I-I was so worried about you! Listen, I'm so sorry about this morning I-"

"It's alright, Beastboy," she cut off the babbling young man. "Actually, I need to apologize to you. I shouldn't have ducked you, the way I did. You didn't do anything wrong. Actually, it's kinda my own fault that you... saw what you saw."

"Hey... that's alright. I was just worried that you'd run away, or something," Beastboy said to her, concerned.

"No, I just had to sort out what had happened. So, I spent some time in my mind, getting answers. When I got back, I kind of needed to get out of the tower for a while. I wandered about town, and ended up at the old Library."

"The one with where Trigon-?" Beastboy thought better of finishing the question.

"That's the one. Anyway I.. uh..." she suddenly seemed tentative. "I... found this." She stepped closer, and held out her hand. On her palm, a familiar copper coin glinted in the moonlight.

Beastboy stared at it, surprised. "Is that the penny that I gave you 'for luck'?"

She nodded. "Mmm hmm, and I guess it worked. Here, you should take it, for now. For luck." She held it out to him, and he took it from her hand, which he was surprised to note trembled ever so slightly. "It's a little battered, but it went through a lot." She laughed softly. "Kinda like us."

He chuckled as well, as he idly turned the penny over in his hand. "Sentimental, Raven?"

Her lips curled into a near imperceptible smirk, as she came to stand next to him. "Just keep that to yourself. So... a penny for your thoughts?"

"Huh?" Beastboy was somewhat confused by his teammate's behavior. She was nervous, that was plain; her demeanor reflected tumultuous thoughts, yet she also seemed strangely bold.

"I want to know what you're doing up here," Raven stated with exaggerated patience.

"Oh, I uh... tried to find you earlier. I was worried that I'd done something wrong, telling you that stuff about the dreams. I never meant to hurt ya, Raven..."

"I know. And like I said before, it's all right. I did kinda freak out on you, but it's not your fault, at all." She sat down near the edge of the Tower, looking out into the night. "It's only fair... I did see your past, too. I've got no right to be upset about this."

Beastboy sat down by her side. "So, anyway, do you want to talk about it? What's happened, I mean."

Raven frowned a little. "It actually is sort of logical. I shouldn't have been so surprised by it. Quite simply, the same thing that allows me to see into your mind, while it's resting, allows you to see into mine. You've been seeing my past, as I have seen yours."

Beastboy nodded. "It does make sense, doesn't it? But what I'm really interested in, is what happened, back when you were a kid... If you want to tell me, that is. If not, it's okay..."

Raven chewed her lower lip, and she seemed to consider her response. After a moment, she spoke. "My childhood, it wasn't... normal. I mean, I wasn't a normal girl, and the other kids, they were less than understanding about my circumstances. Children can be the cruelest people, sometimes. I'm sure you can relate to that."

Beastboy nodded sadly, remembering his own hardships. "Yep."

Raven continued, "Long story short, I was being teased, about the way I looked, by a bunch of kids, and, I just lost it."

"Good. They deserved it."

She smiled a little. "Your lust for vengeance is oddly touching, but, I managed not to hurt anyone. My powers did go haywire, though, and there was... some property damage."

"I take it we're talking about something pretty big here..." Beastboy guessed.

"Actually, I blew the roof off of a small nearby building. Fortunately, the pieces were too small to cause injuries."

"Yeah, _that _sounds like the Raven I know, " he said, "But, what was with that woman... your mother, right?"

Raven nodded, her expression grave. "That was Arella, yes."

"Wait a minute," Beastboy interjected, "I thought your mom's name was Angela?"

"Yes, that was her name, but when she went to Azarath, the people who dwelt there gave her a new name, Arella. It means 'Messenger Angel.' Perhaps the new name was supposed to be symbolic of her beginning a new life, or whatever."

Beastboy frowned. "'Angel,' huh? Sure didn't seem like she was very nice to you."

"She never was, Beastboy. She wasn't allowed to be. From the moment of my birth, Azar sensed the nature of my powers, how they were tied to my emotions. She knew that there would problems if I was allowed to experience too much, or feel too much, so, it was forbidden for anyone to show any emotion towards me."

"Raven, you're telling me that no one was allowed to be your friend? That you weren't given any love, not even from your own mother?"

"...Basically."

Beastboy was aghast. "That's terrible! How could they do that to a child! How could your mother allow them to make her do that!"

"She didn't have much choice," Raven replied in her usual monotone. "If it wasn't for the Monks of Azarath, things would've been much worse. And as it turns out, Azar was right about me; if those kids had just left me alone, like everyone else did, I never would have had my 'accident,' and gotten in trouble in the first place."

"That doesn't make it right, Raven. Did your mother ever make the attempt to get to know you?"

"No, I think I brought back too many bad memories for her. After the 'incident,' I was sent off to be personally tutored by Azar, at the temple. So, that's pretty much how I became the person I am today."

Beastboy turned to look directly at her, and saw the conflicting feelings within her, just beneath the surface. He now understood: All the icy reserve and dry wit of the girl he knew, they were defenses, armor against the things that would hurt her, and by extension, cause her to hurt others. But, they were only a tiny fraction of the true person underneath. But as they sat there, he could see a ghost of that person, and found himself captivated by that shy, vulnerable girl.

"Raven, no matter what happened, it's all in the past. And no matter what people told you then, you are a wonderful person. We all care about you, and we will always be there for you. You're a terrific, brave girl, and the best friend anyone could have."

Raven took her gaze from the water far below them, and looked at him searchingly, not saying a word. When she spoke at last her words were whisper soft.

"Thank you, Beastboy."

He smiled broadly in return. "Anytime, Raven."

Their eyes remained locked for a long moment, then she looked back out over the bay, with a slight smile on her face. "We do seem to be having an awful lot of these... moments lately, don't we?"

"Yeah, but I don't mind it, do you?"

She said nothing, and continued to look away. Beastboy turned his eyes back out over the dark waters, sitting next to his teammate quietly. As he sat, he felt a soft, tentative touch on the back of his hand, which rested on the hard concrete between them. He looked down, and saw Raven's hand, lightly touching his. The gesture was halting, as if she were unsure how it would be received. He looked up at her face, and, even though she still looked away, he could see the trepidation on her features.

He turned his hand over, and gently cradled hers, amazed at how delicate and soft it felt. She seemed tense at first, but hecould feelher relax as he enfolded her hand in his.

As they sat, hand in hand, she spoke quietly.

"No, I don't think I mind the moments at all. Thank you... Garfield."

Beastboy felt his heart skip a beat, at hearing her use his proper name, so affectionately. He'd need to have surgery to have his smile removed, at this rate.

"Anytime, Raven."

Both wanting the moment to last, they continued to sit together quietly, holding each other's hand, not feeling the need for any more words.

* * *

Far below, on the shore of the rocky isle, a pair of figures stood, hiding behind a large boulder, to avoid detection by the heroes in the tower. The larger of the two figures peered up at the Tower, and spoke to his companion in his gutteral voice. 

"Are we really gonna do this, Gizmo? Attack the Tower?"

Gizmo shook his head. "Nah, you pit-sniffer, we're here to have a picnic. Of course we are! That's the plan."

"Uh... I'm not so sure about this, though. Last time we took over the Tower, the Titans stomped us."

A tall figure emerged from the shadows behind them. "Then you'll have to do better this time, won't you?" The voice was dangerously quiet.

Both of the former H.I.V.E. teenagers froze at the words from 'Gilgamesh,' their mysterious patron, who had elected to lead this operation personally, much to their discomfort. Gizmo, despite his small stature, could never be accused of being a coward; he had faced the Titans and many other heroes many times, and was unafraid to go toe-to-toe with any of therm. However, he would freely admit being scared to death of their superior. And finding out his identity had done nothing to relieve his fears; in fact, it only made them worse. Clearly, failure was not an option, this time.

"Are the preparations complete?" the shadowy figure addressed Gizmo now.

"Umm, yessir. I've slipped the Trojan horse programs into the Titans computers, and I've set up the jammers around the perimeter of the island. As soon as we're ready, I'll start 'em up, and those crud-munchers will be completely in the dark, and unable to call each other for assistance."

"And the security protocols?"

"I've already put the overides in; stupid Cyborg needs to update his firewalls more often. All the door codes will be turned off. We'll be able to move freely."

Their leader nodded his approval. "Has your surveillance been able to determine the locations of the Titans?"

"Yeah, Cyborg's in his room, recharging. Bird-boy and the redhead are in the living area. The Elf and the Goth are on the roof."

"Very well. Upon entry, head to the basement, and disable the Tower's backup power generator, then initiate the blackout. Cyborg will be your priority, Gizmo. Mammoth, the Alien is your primary target. If Robin is still with her, he is your responsibility as well. Take them alive, if possible. I have a purpose for them. Once they are subdued, bring them to me."

Mammoth spoke up. "Then Beastboy and Raven-"

"Are mine."

* * *

Raven had to admit to herself, it felt good. 

Over the years, she had conditioned herself to believe that her emotions were dangerous to herself, and others. She had dedicated large portions of her time and energy into stifling her feelings. But, at this moment, as she sat next to Beastboy, their hands still intertwined, she couldn't deny the feelings inside of her.

And she was alright, surprisingly. No loss of control, no powers causing random destruction. Just a comforting warmth inside of her.

She glanced over at her companion, and saw a similar contentment on his face. None of his usual nervous energy, just a small, placid smile. It made her feel good to know that she was the reason for that.

She gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Hey."

He looked at her and his smile grew "Hey yourself. What's up?"

"Well, it's not that I'm not enjoying this or anything, but, maybe it's time to head inside. It's starting to get chilly, and this outfit's not the warmest thing to wear." She looked down at her bare legs, noting the goosebumps on her pale skin.

He chuckled. "Point taken. I was starting to get hungry, anyway."

"Starting to? When are you _not_ hungry?"

"When I'm sleeping."

Raven shook her head, still smiling, "Okay. So... you mind if I join you?" She was proud that her nervousness didn't seem to show in her voice, as she asked.

He was positively beaming now "Sure! I'll... uh, try to tone down on the tofu for y-" He paused suddenly, and one of his pointed ears seeming to perk up a bit, and his face became intent.

Raven was curious. "What?"

"It's nothing... I just thought I heard something." He turned to peer back over his shoulder. Suddenly his eyes widened.

"Raven! Look ou-"

There was a soft hissing sound, then his words were cut off in a strangled gasp. Raven felt his hand tighten briefly around hers, then go limp as he slumped over onto the hard concrete.

"Beastboy!" Raven cried out to him in alarm, still holding his hand as he fell. She leaned over to look at him, feeling panic beginning to claw at her heart.

In the faint illumination provided by the full moon above, the empath could see a shiny glint of medal, projecting form the changeling's neck. It was a dart, its needle tip cruelly lodged in the boy's throat. He was still breathing, albeit shallowly, and his opened eyes seemed to be glazing over. He still seemed to be aware of her, and his mouth worked, as if to speak, but, no words issued from him.

In her worry over her teammate's condition, Raven didn't notice the footsteps that approached them.

"Hello, dear child. So nice to see you again." The voice was velvet soft, yet filled with malevolence.

Raven shot to her feet, embracing her dark powers. She knew that voice all to well.

"Slade!" She could feel rage beginning to boil within her, despite her efforts at control.

The villain was revealed as he stepped forward, the dim ambient light gleaming on his metallic armor. From the depths of his mask, his single eye peered at her in undisguised disdain. In his hand was a strange looking pistol, a noise suppressor affixed to its muzzle. He holstered the weapon as he spoke.

"Don't worry about your friend, Raven. The toxin is a fast-acting muscle relaxant, completely temporary. I want him alive, after all." His voice was matter-of-fact. "I'd ask you to surrender and come quietly, but we know each other too well for that, don't we?"

Raven replied to his words with a blast of dark energy, which Slade dodged easily with his superhuman reflexes. Her anger increased, as she continued to send wave after wave of her magic at him, none of which made contact. Raven could've used her flight abilities to give her a better angle of attack on her agile adversary, but, this would mean abandoning her position between Beastboy and Slade, and she dared not expose him. Protecting him was all that mattered.

"Leave him alone Slade!" Her voice was a harsh growl.

"Temper, temper, child," Slade's voice taunted her, "What would your father think?"

"Shut up!" Raven knew that the villain was deliberately goading her, causing her to lash out without control, but, she couldn't contain her anger, despite her best efforts. Her eyes glowed red with demonic fury.

She slashed out with a knife-like motion of her right hand, and a blade of black light burst forth, catching Slade on his left forearm. He registered no pain, however, as he spun away from the brunt of her attack, and with asmooth motion, drew small cylindrical object from his belt. With a click, the object extended to a 6 foot metal Bo staff, similar to Robin's weapon of choice.

"It's time to finish this, Raven." With shocking speed, he dashed forward. Raven countered his advance with a beam of dark magic, that missed as Slade suddenly changed his path of advance. Leaping high into the air,he launched a huge overhand staff strike at her head, which Raven ducked easily. However, the attack was merely a feint. As soon as he landed, he twisted his body gracefully, and continued the momentum of his missed head-strike, but altered the point of aim lower, and his staff caught Raven on the unprotected side of her right knee with a sharp crack.

Crying out, Raven fell to the ground, the tremendous pain keeping her from focusing her mind enough to use her powers. She was helpless. She had gotten angry, and careless. And as a consequence, she was beaten.

As she lay on the ground, clutching her injured leg, her eyes still glowed with crimson light as Slade approached her. He looked down at her, still holding his staff in one hand.

"Pity, child. I expected more from you." The end of his staff flicked towards her head, lightning-fast, and all was blackness for her.

* * *

Slowly, light returned to Cyborg's sight. Dim, red light. 

_Emergency lighting...What? What happened, where am I?_

He looked about, and found that he was in the Common room of the tower, lying on the floor in front of the couch. His limbs were bound tightly with titanium cable.

"What's going on?" he said aloud, as he vainly attempted to struggle to his feet, finding the cables too secure. He tried to activate his sonic canon, and found it nonfunctional.

"We were attacked, Cyborg." Robin's voice was grim.

"Rob!" Cyborg managed to struggle to his knees, and saw that their leader was in a similar situation to his, bound, and with his utility belt missing. Next to him, Starfire lay, also bound, and apparently unconscious. Raven was also nearby, bound, gagged, and with a nasty bruise on her forehead, right beside her red _chakra _gem.

"Robin, is Star alright?"

Robin's voice was sad. "She's been drugged, Cy. After Mammoth jumped us, they gave her something to keep her under. She never even got a chance to fight. They must have took you out while you were recharging."

"Mammoth? You mean the H.I.V.E. dorks did this? Took us down like punks?"

Robin's eyes narrowed behind his mask. "They had help."

"Who?"

Just then, the door to the room hissed open, and Slade strode in, flanked by Mammoth and Gizmo. Mammoth carried Beastboy's limp form in his massive arms.

"Hello, Titans." Slade's voice was almost genial.

"Slade!" Cyborg once again struggled ineffectively against his bonds.

"Save your strength, Cyborg." Slade looked over at Mammoth. "Place him on the couch. Gizmo, the collar..."

Gizmo snapped to attention. "Yessir!" The diminutive villain reached into his backpack and removed a device that resembled an animal collar with an electronic device affixed to one side. Along the inside, Cyborg could see numerous small needles projecting from the surface. Gizmo handed the device to Slade.

As Mammoth set Beastboy down upon the couch, Slade bent over him and attached the collar, which hung loosely about his slender neck.

"What do you want with him, Slade?" Robin's voice shook with rage. Beside him. Raven looked on, with fear in her eyes. She looked as if she wished to call out, but the gag prevented her saying anything, or using her magic words.

"I don't want this insignificant boy for anything, Robin," Slade's voice dripped with contempt. "It is what resides within him that intrigues me." He turned back to Gizmo. "Give me the nanomachine injection." Gizmo handed him a large hypodermic needle, filled with a clear solution. Slade then looked at Mammoth "Restrain him."

Mammoth put his huge hands on the changeling's arms, pinning them to the couch. Slade leaned forward, and inserted the large needle into the side of Beastboy's neck.

When the injection was completed, Slade and Mammoth drew back, and regarded the boy. "He seems to be relatively unharmed. We can begin." Slade then touched a button on a device mounted on one of his wristbands, and the collar about the boy's neck constricted about his throat tightly, driving the tiny needles into his flesh.

With a startled shout, the boy sprang to wakefulness, thrashing about in pain. "Aaaagh!" He clawed momentarily at the collar, but then, painful muscular spasms seemed to overtake him, and he fell to the ground, convulsing in agony. In time, his paroxysms seemed to tire him out, and he fell to his knees.

"The nanomachines are working, Slade?" Even the small criminal seemed disturbed by what he was seeing.

"Yes, Gizmo. I now have direct control over his nervous system. He cannot shapeshift, except at my bidding. You two may go search the tower... take any items you wish." The two teenage villains left the room.

Beastboy seemed to come to his senses, and looked about the room. He saw his fellow Titans. "R-Raven! Guys! What's going on here?" He tried to get to his feet anddash to his friends, but another series of convulsions seemed to overtake him.

Cyborg felt his heart fall at the sight of his friend's struggles. "BB! Calm down, man... we're ok." This wasn't exactly true, but, the last thing the shapeshifter needed was something else to worry about.

"This will be less painful if you co-operate, Beastboy." Slade's voice was like ice, as he regarded the scene dispassionately. He turned to face his captive audience. "Recently, you Titans stopped an operation that the H.I.V.E. Children were carrying out on my behalf. At first, I was annoyed at this setback, but then, I happened to see something that intrigued me. Your small comrade, here. Or rather, what he's capable of becoming."

He turned to look at Cyborg. "I must thank you for entering such detailed notes into your databases, Cyborg. I never would have been able devise this plan without them."

Cyborg felt his blood boiling with anger, both at Slade, and himself.

"What I plan to do is simple," Slade continued, "I'm going to use the nanomachine neural interface that Gizmo procured from S.T.A.R. Labs to control the Beast that dwells within this boy. He could make quite a useful tool, don't you think? Powerful, yet, obedient. And, I do admit, I will enjoy watching the Titans be destroyed by one of their own."

Beastboy's lips drew back from his teeth in a animalistic snarl. "Slade...!" The rest of the Titans stared on, numb with shock.

"But there is one thing missing from the equation, no?" Slade mused to himself. He walked over to a canvas sack that laid unnoticed nearby and picked it up. "Raven conjectured that there was an emotional component to the appearances of the beast, something to drive him into a state of profound emotional distress. Needless to say, his current situation doesn't seem to be enough. But, not to worry... I've prepared for just such an eventuality."

The criminal mastermind reached into the bag, and withdrew a fairly large, heavy object. "I want you to have something, Beastboy," he said in a deceptively mild voice. "And believe me, giving you this gift is my pleasure, entirely."

He tossed the object to the floor in front of Beastboy, where it landed with a heavy _thud._ As the young Titan looked down at it, Cyborg could see his eyes widen, and his face contort with pain. He visibly paled, and a scream of pure pain erupted from the boy.

"NO! NO!"

"It begins," Slade noted in satisfaction, as he activated his neural interface again.

Cyborg and the other Titans looked down at the object on the floor, recognizing theform of it in the dim red lighting that suffused the Tower.

There lay the still-petrified head of their former fellow Titan and friend, Terra.

"TERRA!" Beastboy's screams became more and more incoherent, and gradually became bestial roars, as the horrifying change took hold of him.

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

First off, I have to say this. I am not a Terra-hater.

Doing this actually was a little distressing for me, and writing it a little hard to do. But, This all made too much sense to me: a way to cause BB the necessary pain to initiate the change, and it also makes sense, as a way for Slade to wreak his vengeance upon his wayward former apprentice.

Anyway, this was all very dark, I admit, but, sometimes it ain't all roses, kids. The next two chapters, which will be posted simultaneously, will be the final ones of this tale. But, just because it will be an ending, that doesn't mean that it is THE end...

You'll see what I mean, hopefully, sooner than later...

Regards,

The Doctor,

29 January 2006


	9. Dischord

CHAPTER NINE: DISCHORD

Robin, still bound and laying on the floor, watched as the Beast roared, seemingly in some sort of pain. Apparently, the process that Slade was using to interface with its neurological system was causing it discomfort. Slade, for his part, seemed to be concentrating very intently, while operating some sort of electronic device mounted on his wrist. The huge creature advanced a few halting steps towards them, then stopped, clutching its head and letting out another anguished bellow.

_That's it, keep fighting, BB... give me some time._

Robin wracked his brain, trying to come up with a possible solution to his situation. Slade had tried this sort of tactic before, with Terra, and she had been able to resist him, so, perhaps Slade had miscalculated once again. At least, that was what he was hoping.

The first order of business was to free himself from the bonds around his arms, legs, and torso. Examining them, he saw the knot in the ropes that were wound tightly around him, within reach if he could just free one hand. His captors had removed his utility belt, so ingenuity would be required. A moment's thought and he had a solution, remembering a trick he saw a his mentor perform years ago.

_You didn't restrain my wrists, Slade... sloppy._

Bracing himself, Robin flexed the muscles in his shoulders and chest, made strong by years of martial arts training and acrobatics. After a moment of excruciating effort, he heard a loud _pop _ and felt the stabbing pain as his left shoulder dislocated itself from its socket. Gritting his teeth against the agony, he used the added wiggle room he now had within his bonds to free his right arm enough to attack the knot in the ropes, untying it quickly. 

His timing was fortunate, as whatever resistance the Beast had been able to put forth to Slade's unspoken compulsion had been overcome, and the huge creature leapt toward the Boy Wonder, its claws extended. Robin was just able to struggle to his feet as the razor-sharp talons ripped into the carpeted floor where he had lain just moments before. The Beast turned to pursue him, its green eyes devoid of any recognition.

Robin turned to face the Beast, keeping a wary eye on its huge razor-sharp claws. "Beastboy, it's me. It's Robin. Beastboy, please, I know you don't want to do this. Don't let Slade use you the way he tried to use Terra!" Robin didn't hold out much hope that his pleas would register with the rampaging creature. His fears were correct, as the Beast leveled a vast overhand swipe at his face, which he dodged with ease. This, however, left him open for the the backhanded blow that the Beast followed with. The powerful strike caught Robin in the chest, flinging him into the wall behind him. The impact knocked the wind out of him, and he fell to his knees gasping for breath.

"Robin, heads up!" Cyborg's voice rang out.

Robin heard his call, and looked up just in time to see a huge green fist rushing towards his face. He ducked the punch and tucked into a roll to escape, ignoring the shooting pain in his shoulder.

Robin rose to his feet, facing down the huge animal. He knew there was no way he could take the creature on physically, especially by himself, without his utility belt and with one arm useless. He needed a diversion.

* * *

Gizmo frowned in frustration as he tried another code on the remote control-like device that he held in his hand. He'd been trying to pick the electronic lock on the vault in the Titan's basement for the better part of a half an hour, with no success. The encryption on the lock was tougher than almost anything else he'd encountered. 

_If those cludeheads went to all this trouble to lock this up, whatever's in here has to be good!_

"Why don' we just break it?" Mammoth grunted from behind him.

Gizmo looked back over his shoulder. "Break it. Yeah, sure. It's adamantium alloy, moron! Do you know what that means?"

Mammoth seemed to think a moment. "...No."

"It means it's _almost_ as hard as your skull! We ain't gonna just break this, so shut up and let me work!" Muttering to himself, he tried another sequence of alphanumerics on the lock, which showed nary a sign of opening.

"Argh! Crud-munchin' lock! I wish Jinx were here! She could use her powers to cause the lock to fail, or something."

"Well then, looks like it's your lucky day, Gizmo," A familiar female voice called out from behind them.

As they Gizmo and Mammoth turned around, they saw a pair of glowing pink feline eyes in the shadows. As they stood in stunned silence, Jinx stepped forward and waved, smiling. "Miss me?"

Mammoth grinned oafishly. "How'd you get here?"

"Titans had me locked up," she replied. "It was boring, being interrogated all the time. You know how it is. But, the power suddenly went out, and the locks on the door let go. So... here I am!" She looked at the safe Gizmo was attempting to crack. "Hey, want me to help ya with that?"

Gizmo was ecstatic. "Yeah!"

Jinx held her hands up, aiming them at the safe. "Sure. Anything for my friends." Then she paused. "You are my friends, aren't you?"

Gizmo was puzzled by her odd tone. "Yeah, sure we are. We've known ya since your first year at the academy. So, open the safe already."

"I dunno, Gizzy... I'm not sure I'm feeling the love, here." She lowered her hands, seemed to think for a moment. "I mean, I'm grateful that you broke into the tower to rescue me... You were here to rescue me, weren't you?" Her tone was very mild.

"Y-yeah, sure we were," he replied.

"Good to hear... I'm sure that you were going to come see me after you were done going through this safe here."

"Yeah," Mammoth replied. "We were going to give you a cut of whatever's in it," he added.

"So nice to hear that!" Jinx said. "That is, if Slade lets you keep any of it."

"Slade? How did you know-" Mammoth began, but she cut him off.

"Oh, I've been shadowing you for quite a while now. Funny, you didn't mention looking for me that whole time. Not once."

"Well, we were gonna..." Mammoth mumbled.

"Yeah, honest..." Gizmo was growing more and more worried. Something was very... _off _about her demeanor.

Jinx frowned. "Sorry guys, but, I don't think that Slade helped you two break in here just to rescue little ol' me. He's not the sentimental type. And besides..." she backed up several paces, and her eyes began to glow with magenta light. "I haven't forgotten who left me to be a snack for that thing down in the sewer." All traces of a smile had left her face.

Gizmo felt his mouth get suddenly dry. "Easy now, Jinx. We didn't mean to... umm..." he thought hard for a moment, trying to find a way to save his hide. "... It was Mammoth's fault! He's the one who ran away! I was just stuck on his back!"

"_What!" _Mammoth exclaimed. "Now wait a minute, you were the one who told me to just keep running!"

"Aw c'mon, you big cludgehead! You know I wanted to go back for Jinx!" Gizmo looked at the sorceress. "You know I'd never do anything like that to you, right Jinx? It was all because of that big coward over there!"

The pink-haired girl eyed them silently.

Mammoth was clearly losing his cool. "You little runt! I should've left you behind, too!"

Everyone paused momentarily, and Mammoth seemed to realize what he had just blurted out. "W-wait, Jinx, what I meant to say was-"

Whatever it was the overgrown villain meant say was cut off as a rapid-fire volley of pink energy bolts caught him in the chest. With a shout of pain, Mammoth was tossed back into a pile of rubbish that had collected in the corner of the basement. Groaning, he struggled back to his feet. "Jinx..."

"Sorry, Mammoth," she said, "Looks like we aren't friends, after all." She lifted her hands and launched another blast. This one, however was aimed at a metal ceiling beam directly above Mammoth's head. The brutish boy could only watch as the welds holding the beam up failed due to the effect of Jinx's innate magical talent. With a metallic shriek, the heavy beam fell from above, catching Mammoth square on the head, knocking him unconscious instantly.

She turned to her other former comrade, now smiling again. "That was fun, don't you agree, Giz?"

Gizmo had retreated to a corner of the darkened basement, hoping to be as inconspicuous as possible. "Ummm... yeah?" he squeaked.

Jinx looked at the safe Gizmo had been trying to break into. "Hmmm... I would like to know what's in there, come to think of it..." She raised her hands and used her hex bolts to short out the electronic lock. She opened the door and peered in. "Heh, now I know why it was locked so securely. Would be a shame for that to fall into the wrong hands..." She turned back to Gizmo. "I have to thank you for leading me to this. Just for that, you might actually get out of this without taking a beating.

"But first, why don't we talk about what you and Slade _really _ doing here..."

* * *

It didn't take Robin very long to realize that he was hopelessly overmatched, physically, even excluding the dislocated shoulder he was nursing. Any attempt to fight the Beast directly would be foolhardy at best. However, he knew that if he didn't keep the creature occupied, his still-disabled friends would be at great risk. A quick glance around his surroundings, and he had an idea. He quickly snatched the Titan's GameStation console from off its perch on top of the entertainment center, ripping the cables out of the machine in the process. 

"Hey BB," he said, "Sorry about this..."

Robin threw the GameStation as hard as he could at the huge creature, striking high on the chest. The Beast growled in annoyance, and tried to rush the Titan, only to be struck in the head by a rather heavy book that Robin grabbed off a nearby shelf as he sought to evade the charging behemoth.

As he continued to retreat from the enraged Beast, Robin spied Slade on the far side of the room. The villain still seemed to be in an almost trace-like state. Apparently, controlling the primal creature was taking up most of his concentration.

_Maybe if I can get to Slade, I can break his control over Beastboy... let's see if I can pull this off..._

The Beast roared in annoyance as he was struck in the head by the small table lamp Robin lobbed at him.

_I think he might be getting frustrated. That could be helpful..._

Unfortunately for the Boy Wonder, the Beast was also a quick learner. As Robin dashed from his covered position behind the couch in attempt to outflank his opponent, he didn't hear Cyborg's warning cry in time, as he was hit full-force by the heavy coffee table that the Beast flung at him. Struck in his already-injured shoulder by the heavy piece of furniture, he could do little but fall to the floor, nearly paralyzed with pain.

From the other side of the room, Robin heard Cyborg call out to him in alarm. The Boy Wonder tried to struggle to his feet as quickly as he could, but the Beast was quicker. The huge animal grabbed his neck in one taloned hand, and lifted him from the floor as though he weighed nothing. As he gasped for breath, Robin could only hope that some vestige of his friend within the Beast's mind would stop him from finishing him off.

Slade walked up beside the Beast, and peered at Robin with his one eye, regarding him with utter disdain.

"Kill him," the villain said coldly.

Robin braced himself for the pain of having his throat crushed by the Beast, but, the creature remained still, looking at him intently.

"I gave you an order, animal." Slade raised his left wrist, and once again activated the small device that linked him to the Beast.

A light on the electronic collar around the Beast's neck began to flash rapidly, and the huge creature dropped Robin to the ground as it let out another roar of pain, clutching its head.

"I _will_ be obeyed..." Slade growled, as he stared at the creature he was attempting to exert his will over.

The Beast continued to let out cries of pain, holding its head in its huge hands. It fell to its knees, the cries of pain growing softer. Finally, it let out one more soft cry, almost a whimper, and fell on its side heavily, seeming to have lost consciousness.

"Beastboy!" Robin called out in alarm.

As the creature laid on the floor, its body seemed to tremble a moment, and then shrank, the animal features shifting back in to the familiar form of Robin's teammate. Beastboy laid deathly still.

Slade looked down at the changeling. "Good help is so hard to find."

The pain in Robin's wounded shoulder was suddenly secondary to the rage boiling in the pit of his stomach. He rose to his feet, almost snarling at his adversary. With a cry of anger, he leapt at Slade, attempting to land a flying kick to the side of his head. Slade was ready for the attack, however and neatly ducked to the side, his hand flashing to his belt and drawing his staff. As soon as Robin's feet hit the ground, the extensible weapon slammed into the back of the Titan's head, filling his vision with stars and knocking him to the ground in a heap.

As Robin tried vainly to regain his senses, he heard Slade step up behind him. He turned to face his enemy, seeing the butt of his staff leveled for a killing strike at his head.

"I suppose the old maxim is true," Slade said, "If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. Goodbye, Robin." The masked villain drew his staff back, and Robin braced himself for the end.

The expected blow never came, however, as Slade was suddenly struck by a salvo of pink energy, coming from the entrance to the room. Caught off guard, Slade was knocked back several yards, letting out a grunt of pain.

Robin turned, and saw catlike magenta eyes shining in the darkened corner of the room.

"Jinx!"

The sorceress rushed to Robin's side, holding out something to him. "Don't say I never got you anything."

Robin took the item from her hand. It was one of his utility belts. He strapped on his equipment, still operating with only one hand. "Why are you helping?"

"Personal reasons, don't worry about it," she replied brusquely, "Now, go free your pals quick, I'll watch your back."

Robin nodded, and rushed to his teammates. He was vaguely aware of Jinx firing more of her magic at something, but knew he had to concentrate on the task at hand. When he got to Cyborg, the technologically-enhanced Titan shook his head. "Raven first. You, Star and BB all need a medic, and, I'm not as useful in a fight. Gizmo's disabled my weapons."

"Right!" The boy wonder moved to his half-demon comrade, and removed her gag. "I can free them quicker than you," She said. She "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!"

As she finished her incantation, black energy leapt from her body, severing the bonds on Starfire and Cyborg, severing her own bonds at the same time. Quickly rising to her feet, she helped Robin, up. "Wait a moment," she commanded. She laid a hand gently on his left shoulder, Robin felt a momentary jolt of pain as the dislocated joint re-aligned, then the warmth as her healing magic did it's work.

"Thanks," he said, "Now, see if you can fix Starfire, she's been drugged. I'll see to Cyborg."

Robin dashed to Cyborg's side, helping the huge Titan to his feet. "Robin, where's Jinx?" he said with concern.

Cyborg was right to be worried, for the sound of her hex bolts had stopped. Joined by Raven and the now-revived Starfire, they looked all about the darkened room, but saw no sign of either Jinx or Slade. The shadows offered any number of hiding places for either of them.

"Robin," Starfire said in a soft voice, "I am worried. It is too quiet, as you say."

"Don't worry about her, alien," Slade's soft baritone voice said from the shadows at their back. "Traitors aren't worth such regard."

As they turned to face the voice of their enemy. Jinx's limp form was hurled to the floor before them. Of their opponent, there was no trace.

Cyborg rushed to her side instantly. "Jinx!" He knelt next to her, and gently cradled her head, examining her injuries. "She's alive, but badly beaten. Raven. Could you help her?"

"I'll try," The empath said. But before she could move to aid the sorceress, a small spherical object came rolling out of the shadows, into the midst of the group of them.

Robin's eyes widened, as he recognized what it was. "Look out!"

Before anyone could heed his warning, there was a loud detonation, and a billowing cloud of smoke surrounded all of them, blinding them and reducing them to fits of coughing.

Reaching to his belt for his gas-mask, Robin called out for his team. "Cyborg, Starfire, Raven, sound off! Where are you?"

"I'm here, Rob," he heard Cyborg rasp.

"I am uninjured, Robin," came Starfire's reply a moment later.

"Raven?" Robin called "Raven, are you alright?"

"She is for now, Robin." The voice was Slade's.

As the smoke cleared, The three remaining Titans saw Slade, with Raven clutched tightly to him. He had his left hand over her mouth; in the other, there was a knife, it's deadly point pressed to the side of the empath's neck.

"These are my terms," the villain continued. "You will let me leave the Tower. You will make no attempt to rescue Raven. She will be my assurance of your good behavior."

"Slade..." Robin growled, "This isn't over..."

"I think it is, Robin. You are out of options. I know none of you will risk the life of your friend."

They watched helplessly as Slade backed towards the exit with Raven held hostage.

Suddenly, a green blur flashed from the shadows. A bloodcurdling snarl filled the air as a emerald-furred jaguar sprang forth, sinking its huge fangs into Slade's knife-wielding hand with the sickening crunch of cracking bone, forcing the weapon from his hand. As the masked criminal cried out in agony, Raven slipped from his grasp and dashed to safety.

With a heave of herculean strength, Slade managed to fling the predatory cat off of his hand. The Jaguar landed on all fours, and its body shifted fluidly into the form of Beastboy.

"Youuu.." Slade growled, as he nursed his badly mangled hand.

"Meee.." Beastboy replied, as he glared at Slade, with hate burning in his eyes. "You're right. This _is_ over, because I'm ending it. Right now." He began stalking towards the injured villain.

"You forget yourself, boy, You're nothing. You're an animal." Slade slammed a button on his wrist controller with his mutilated hand, activating the nanomachines inside Beastboy.

The collar around Beastboy's neck began to beep loudly, and once again. Beastboy fell to his knees again, gritting his teeth in pain.

Starfire flew forward, her eyes ablaze with green light. "Beastboy!"

"Keep away, Starfire, or I'll cook his frontal lobe like an egg," Slade growled at her.

Beastboy, however, still struggled to his feet, and continued his march towards Slade.

"Impossible," Slade gasped.

"You want the Beast so badly, Slade?" Beastboy shouted, " Well then, enjoy!" Beastboy's body once again blurred into the form of the huge creature, and rushed towards the villain with a roar of pure rage, tackling the villain to the ground. The Beast looked down at his prey, and then lunged. The lethal fangs were not aimed Slade's exposed throat, however, but at the device mounted upon his left wrist.

As the controller was crushed in the Beast's jaws, Slade and the Beast let out simultaneous screams of anguish, both writhing and spasming. Then, all at once, both fell silent, and collapsed.

"Beastboy!" Raven cried, as she rushed to his side. He had shifted back to his natural form, and laid completely still. The empath pressed her hands to his forehead, and concentrated for a moment, eyes closed. After a moment, she opened her eyes. "... You fool!" she gasped.

Cyborg joined her at his side, looking down at his friend, the now-conscious Jinx close at his side. "W-what's wrong with him, Rae?"

"When he destroyed the controller, the feedback was too much for him," she said, her voice breaking. "The pain... its shut his mind down, Cyborg... I can't... I can't find him..." She stared down at him, gently running her hand through his hair. "He's in a coma. A deep one."

Robin took a deep breath, steeling himself. This wasn't right. This wasn't how it should end. He felt a gentle touch on his shoulder, as he was joined by Starfire. He looked over at her, and sighed at the sight of her saddened eyes. "We won't give up on him. Beastboy won't leave us like this. Starfire, take him to Medical. We'll join you in a second."

She nodded, moved to Raven side, to take up their comrade.

"Raven, what about Slade?" Jinx asked.

The violet-cloaked girl moved over to briefly examine the unmoving villain, his single eye still staring out from the depths of his mask. "The overload fried his motor synapses He's alive, and conscious, but he can't move, or speak. He's a prisoner in his own body."

"Will he ever get better?" she asked.

"No. He may as well be a statue. There's a certain poetic justice to that, after what he did to Terra," she said grimly."I hope he lives a _very _ long time." She got up, and followed Starfire as she bore Beastboy away.

Robin moved to Jinx's side. "The Titans owe you, Jinx," he told the battered sorceress.

"Eh, I never liked Slade, anyway," she replied. "Gizmo and Mammoth are tied up in the basement, by the way.

Cyborg looked at her very intently. "Jinx, you know, I think that you could maybe stay here a while. Raven could take care of those injuries..."

She looked at him, and smiled. "Awwww... how sweet. I'm afraid I'm gonna say no. Sorry."

Cyborg looked crestfallen.

"Now, don't give me that look. I know it'd probably be nice to hang out with you guys and all, but, I..." she paused. "I don't think I'm cut out to be a team player."

"What will you do?" Cyborg asked.

"Wander around, see the sights... I'll make it up as I go along." She looked at Robin, "Unless the Boy Wonder here wants to try and stop me?"

Robin shook his head wearily. "No, not this time. Just try to stay out of trouble."

She grinned mischievously, "You're a good guy after all, Rob!" She punched him in his recently-dislocated shoulder, and grinned even more at his wince. She then turned and walked towards the exit. Then, she paused, and walked back over to Cyborg, stood on tiptoes, and kissed him soundly on the lips.

"See ya around, Tin man." she whispered in his ear.

She then turned and walked out the door.

"I hope so," Robin heard Cyborg whisper.

* * *

On an evening, several days after, Raven sat by a Medlab bed, looking down at the unmoving form of Beastboy, cradling his hand in hers. 

"The Titans are going to have a memorial for Terra," she said. "I'm... I'm sure you'd like to hear that. That is if you can hear me now. I'm honestly not sure about that..."

She continued to hold his hand, and stare down at him. The steady beep of the monitors by his bed told her that he was alive. It was hard to tell, just looking at him. He barely seemed to be breathing.

"I... I can't stand this anymore. Three days..."

She closed her eyes. These had been the longest three days of her life. This person, this boy she had grown so close to... he was slipping away. She could feel it, more each time she came to see him. He would be gone forever, soon, if something wasn't done.

She opened her eyes.

_No. This isn't how it ends._

TO BE CONTINUED...

AUTHOR'S NOTES: 

On to chapter 10...

Regards,

The Doctor

19 March 2006


	10. Epilogue

AKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

I dedicate this chapter to the ladies:

For Ally: I hope this makes you smile!

For CalliopeMused: For supporting me through my fits of insecurity.

For Kayasuri-n: I hope my kneecaps are safe now.

For Lambbaby: I left the ears alone!

For Vixxelinn: Do you think I've earned a hot chocolate, with this?

EPILOGUE

Beastboy awoke, his eyes opening slowly, struggling to consciousness as if he were a diver attempting to the surface of the ocean from great depths.

_Where am I? Last I remember, I was the Beast... and under Slade's' control. He was trying to make me fight the others, then I felt something... pain. And everything went white..._

Beastboy attempted to get his bearings. As he looked around, shaking out the cobwebs that were in his head, he saw that he was lying in bed, in his room. It was dark, all illumination coming from the light of the moon streaming in though his window. However, something was wrong.

_Why is my room... clean?_

Indeed, there was no trace of the usual rubbish that cluttered the Titan's quarters. Without the familiar disorder, his room felt almost empty.

The young changeling swung his feet to the floor, stood up, and stumbled his way to the light switch. He flipped it on, and nothing happened. Evidently, the power was still out.

_Hmmm... the others must have put me here, after I went down during the fight. Guess I couldn't have been out too long, or Cy'd have the juice running by now. I should go let the others know I'm awake. _

Although the power was out, rendering the automatic door inoperable, the doors were equipped with a manual override. Opening a small panel on the wall, Beastboy pulled a lever that released the pneumatic pressure on the door, allowing him to force it open by hand. Stepping our of his room, he made his way down the darkened hallway. Since the elevators were inoperable due to the blackout, he took the stairs to the living area of the Tower, figuring that this would be the most likely place to encounter his comrades.

However, when he reached his destination, it was seemingly deserted.

"Raven? Cyborg? Robin?" He received no answer to any of his calls.

_Ok... _

"Uhh... Slade? Anyone?"

Still, there was no response

_I am officially creeped out._

Walking over to the window, he looked out, across the bay, and saw something that only added to his growing unease.

Jump city was missing.

Actually, the whole coast line was missing. The waters simply extended out as far as the eye could see. It was as if the Tower and the island on which it sat were all that existed.

"This... this can't be real..." Beastboy said softly, in shock.

"You're absolutely correct." A feminine voice said from behind him.

Beastboy spun around to face the speaker.

"Raven!"

"Well, yes and no." As she stepped into the shaft of pale moonlight streaming in from the outside window, Beastboy saw the familiar face of the half demon girl. However, rather than the customary blue cloak , she was garbed in a warm russet-brown hue, with her hood lowered.

"What's with the new color, Rae? I don't understand..."

She smiled at him. "Actually I'm not Raven. Rather, I am a part of her. I am the embodiment of her Wisdom." Although she spoke with the same voice as Raven did, there were a few subtle differences. There seemed to be a underlying tone that spoke of experience and maturity, beyond the youthful appearance of her face.

" 'Embodiment of her-' " It suddenly clicked in Beastboy's head "You're one of those... other Ravens... that me and Cy saw when we went into her mirror!"

"Precisely." She smiled warmly at him.

He scratched his head in puzzlement. "So, what's going on, then? How did I end up in Rae's head again... it sure looks different."

"You're not in Ravens' mind, Beastboy. We are inside of _your _mind."

"We're inside of me? How's that possible?"

"During the battle with Slade, the neural interface between him and yourself was overloaded." Wisdom replied. " The huge spike of stimuli into your brain was more than your mind could bear, so it shut itself down. You've basically been in a coma, trapped inside of your own mind. The mind takes some details for granted, so, that's why some things aren't quite accurate here. Like Jump City not being here, or your room being clean."

"I've been in a coma... do you know how long I've been out?" Beastboy asked.

"Six days."

"_Six days?"_ he exclaimed. "Jeez... wait a minute, what are you doing here, then? Are you just some sort of hallucination? Am I going crazy, or something?"

Wisdom chuckled a little. "No Beastboy, you're still relatively sane. And I'm no hallucination. I came over with Raven, when she came here to try to fix things. You see, she was able to determine by trying to contact your mind that the damage done to it would never heal itself naturally. You would be trapped in a comatose state forever, unless drastic measures were taken. Fortunately, she realized that there was something she could do. You know how her mind has been touching yours, while you sleep, looking into your memories, and such?"

Beastboy nodded.

"Well, it seems that some sort of link, an affinity. it might be called, has developed between your mind and hers. In the terminology of psychics, this is called 'Unity.' Raven deduced that she might be able to use that affinity to fully enter your comatose mind, and fix things from the inside."

"Sounds intense," he observed.

"It is," Wisdom replied, "and quite risky, it must be said. But, things were starting to look pretty bleak, and she decided to go ahead. All has gone well, so far. She's been in here for the last 24 hours, more or less, healing the mental injuries you've sustained."

"I see... do you think she could fix the Beast?" the changeling asked hopefully.

"That would imply that the Beast is something that needs to be fixed, which isn't precisely true, Beastboy." Wisdom moved to the window, and looked out into the infinite night spread beyond the horizon. "The Beast is simply an aspect of Garfield Logan, much as I am an aspect of Raven. He's the most primal, basic portions of you, anger and animal will, but that doesn't make him a 'bad' part of you. In fact, he's very necessary to you. He did help you save the Titans, after all. You resisted Slade's conrol, together.

"He's a part of who you are, and you need to understand him. And perhaps, Raven can help you with that, once she's finished fixing things up in here. There are some similarities to her dealings with her own emotions, after all."

Thinking of the violet-haired girl made Beastboy feel warm inside. "So, she's still here? Where is she?"

"She's around, somewhere. No use looking for her, she's so absorbed in her task, that you'd never find her. She's probably not aware that you've attained this level of consciousness, or that we're having this conversation. Oh, before I forget..." Wisdom walked over to one of the closets on the north wall of the room, and knocked softly on the door. "You can come out now, dear. It's all right."

"Is it safe?" came a tiny voice from inside of the closet. "Is Beastboy going to be alright?"

"Absolutely. Now why don't you come out now, hmmm? You'll feel a lot better out here, with us."

The closet door opened, and a figure garbed in a slate gray cloak crept out cautiously. Beneath her raised hood, Beastboy could see Raven's familiar features.

"Dude, that's the Timid Raven that Cy and me ran into before!"

"That's right. The poor thing was worried sick about you, and crept here through the link Raven has established, while she's working on you. That's actually part of why I'm here. You could think of it as babysitting." Wisdom smiled, and put her hand on Timid's shoulder, leading Raven's shy emotional incarnation over to the couch at the center of the room, where they sat down. "We can talk a while, if you like. There's not much else to do. "

"Alright," Beastboy said, and sat next to the two. Timid, who was seated between them, looked at him with her huge eyes for a moment, then rested her hooded head on his shoulder. He tentatively wrapped a arm around her, trying to be comforting. She snuggled closer, and closed her eyes.

Wisdom looked at them affectionately. "So, what shall we talk about?"

"I guess... " he thought a moment. "Could we talk about... Raven? I mean, you are kind of an expert."

"If you like. "

"It's just that she doesn't talk about herself that much, and... well..." he was trying not to sound too scatterbrained, which was a little hard, given his rather excitable nature. "... she's started to talk to me a little more, lately, and it's great! I'd really like to know more about her, but, I'm not sure how to talk to her."

"With your mouth." Wisdom replied with perfectly straight face.

"...Hey! I thought making jokes was my job."

"Sorry. I just couldn't pass that one up. Raven does have a pretty well developed sense of humor, you know. Anyway, there's really no huge secret here. But what I can tell you is that patience is the key. She's just learning to open up, and it's rather frightening for her. She seems cool and distant, at times, but that's just what she wants people to think. She's actually quite sensitive. From time to time, she might seem like she's pushing you out, but, just be patient with her. You'll be rewarded for it, trust me."

Beastboy thought about it. "It makes sense. I got the feeling from talking to her that she wants to talk more, but she just doesn't know how, or is afraid of saying something wrong."

Wisdom nodded. "Opening up to people makes her feel vulnerable, and she's not used to that. But it's not a bad thing, and she'll learn how to deal with it, especially if you work with her on that. Having someone she respects and admires going out of their way to help her makes a big impression on her."

"She admires me?" Beastboy was definitely surprised.

"Very much, and the more she's found out about you, the more that feeling grows. She is very drawn to your optimism, the way that you've stayed positive, despite all the bad things that have happened to you. That's why seeing you hurting during this whole episode had such an effect on her."

Beastboy was trying to take this information in. "It's just a little surprising that someone could like me. I mean, I thought I might never meet anyone again, after Terra..." Saying her name suddenly jogged an image in his mind, of the horrifying fate she had suffered at the hands of Slade. He lowered his head, feeling grief starting to churn in his chest.

Wisdom seemed to note his emotional distress. "I'm very sorry about Terra, Beastboy, as is Raven herself," she said as she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I know it seemed that Raven didn't like her very much, but, that's not really the whole story."

"What do you mean?" he said, as he unconsciously held Timid a little closer.

"It wasn't really simple dislike that caused all the issues with Terra. I'd say that the main problem was that Terra and Raven were a little too much alike, if that makes sense."

Beastboy thought about it for a moment. "It kind of does, y'know. They both had issues talking about the past, and they both have problems with their powers, sometimes."

"That's very true," Wisdom agreed with a nod. "It might be what came between them. Raven had difficulty trusting Terra, because she could see how much trouble Terra was having, and knew just how far that could drive a person. Unfortunately, Raven was still too isolated emotionally herself to reach out to her."

"I hope that part of her might be changing," Beastboy said.

"It is, and you're a major factor in that. You're helping her open a new chapter of her life. Change is good, for Raven, at least when you're involved."

Beastboy felt himself blush a little. "She's doing the same for me, too. Her coming to see me after the whole Beast thing... it meant a lot to me. And when she talked to me, when I was moping out on the shore... She even hugged me, when I was crying!" he said in a rush.

Wisdom smiled at his excitement. "Yes, she was as surprised as you were, believe me. For once in her life, she went with what she felt was right, instead of rationalizing her way out of it, and she found she liked it. Not that she would have admitted it, right off the bat, but still, it was a major moment for the both of you. And if you play your cards right, it may not be the last hug she gives you," Wisdom said, a slightly teasing note to her voice.

Beastboy was definitely flushed now. "I-I hope so. I just don't want to screw this up. I'm pretty good at that," he admitted.

"Just be the person you are," she reassured him. "That's the person she likes; you don't need to change yourself to please her. And don't be afraid of her moods; half the time, she's not as mad as she makes out to be. Granted, she can be a little prickly, and she's unused to this whole situation, but, just be patient. Everything works out, in the fullness of time."

Just then, the lights in the ceiling flickered, and came on, illuminating the room. Timid, who had evidentially dozed off in Beastboy's arms, stirred. She looked up in alarm, and nestled even closer to him. Beastboy looked at Wisdom quizzically.

"Ah, it would seem that Raven's almost finished with her repairs," the brown cloaked girl noted, "We've got to get you back to your room."

"Why?" he asked in confusion.

"It's a little complex, but, lets just say you need to be back where you started, when she completes patching things up in here. She still thinks your consciousness is asleep, and she won't have to search around inside your mind if you're in your room. It'll be easer for her to wake you up, that way."

Beastboy nodded. "Alright, back to bed then."

"That's right. We'll walk you back." They rose from the couch, Timid still clinging to Beastboy, and walked over to the now-working elevators, for the ascent to the living quarters.

As they entered his room, Beastboy looked at his companions and winked. "So, you girls gonna tuck me in?"

Wisdom shook her head with a smile. "Always a jester. Just go ahead and lie down. Raven will do the rest."

Beastboy started toward his bed, but was stopped by a touch on his shoulder. He turned and saw Timid's huge eyes gazing at him from within her hood. Wordlessly, she put her arms around him, wrapping him in a gentle embrace. Beastboy returned the hug, hoping to provide comfort to the trembling emotion.

Wisdom placed her hand on Timid's gray-cloaked shoulder, gently separating her from Beastboy. "You're spoiling her, you know," she observed with a smile

"I don't mind. Wish I could say hi to the rest of Raven's inner children some time."

"Don't worry; I get the feeling that maybe we'll see each other again, sometime," Wisdom said, her eyes sparkling. "Quite a few of us would like to meet you. It's something for your to think about, when you feel better." She led him over to the bed, and motioned for him to lay down. Whatever Raven was doing to him was having an effect; Beastboy could feel his eyelids getting heavy.

Before he could drift away entirely, Wisdom leaned down close, and spoke softly into his ear, in a tone tinged with a hint of amusement..

"By the way, might I suggest complimenting Raven on her new wardrobe when you see her? I think she'd like that..."

"Wha-?" he muttered, his head thick with drowsiness.

"Good night, dear, " she whispered.

Before he could inquire further into what her words meant, he drifted off, as slumber claimed him.

* * *

Beastboy's eyes slowly cracked open, and were immediately assaulted by fluorescent lighting. Squinting against the harsh glare, he tried to gather his wits. As his eyes focused, he saw that he was in the Titan's Medlab, shirtless, with various wires and tubes attached to him. 

Looking down at the I.V.s in his left arm, he grimaced. _I'm getting a bit tired of needles, thank you very much..._

He tried to reach over with his right hand to remove some of the electronic sensors stuck to his chest, but found it restrained, by something gripping his hand gently. When he looked over, he saw Raven laying on another bed next to his, her left hand cradling his. One look at her, and he immediately understood Wisdom's departing words to him.

_...White?  
_

Indeed, the empath was garbed in snowy white, head to toe. Beastboy had seen this several times before, always in situations that seemed to be personally significant to her. So, needless to say, his curiosity was piqued.

As if on cue, Raven began to stir, her eyes slowly opening, and meeting his. They were silent for a long moment, their hands still together..

Finally, she spoke. "Take a picture, it'll last longer."

Beastboy couldn't keep the smile off his face. "Nice to see you again, too."

Her hand finally leaving his, she sat up, rubbing her temples with a groan. "Likewise. How are you feeling?"

"Weak as a newborn kitten. But, living on a intra-veinous glucose and saline solution will do that to ya."

Raven slid down from her cot. "Wait a second, I'll help you with those." She walked around to him, and switched off the machines monitoring him. "Hold out your arm, I'll get the tubes out." He removed the wires stuck to his with his free hand while she gently removed the needles from his forearm.

Beastboy looked down at the ugly bruises left behind by the I.V. tubes and winced. "That's pretty gross, right there."

"I can take care of that," Raven replied. She concentrated a moment, and a warm glow surrounded her hands. As she placed her hands on his arm, Beastboy felt the healing energy spread through his injured limb. When she moved her hands away, the bruises were gone.

"Thank you, Raven," Beastboy said. "Seems like you're making a habit out of fixing me up."

"Someone has to, you're pretty good at getting yourself hurt."

"Awww... my own guardian angel."

"That's the first time anyone's ever called me _that._"

"Well, you look the part, especially with the new threads." Beastboy idly toyed with her snowy white cloak. "I like it, though. It looks nice on you."

Beastboy swore that he saw her flush slightly, before she ducked her head shyly, and raised her hood. "I-ummm...I'm glad you like it. "

Beastboy slid down from the medical bed and stood to face her, looking up at the slightly taller girl. "I do like it. But, I thought Blue was your favorite color?"

She looked back at him. "White is... it's symbolic, for me," she said mysteriously.

"Of what?"

"... It's complicated. The best way I can put it is... it means I've found something."

"That certainly clears things up," Beastboy remarked dryly.

"It's tough for me to explain," Raven said. She paused for a moment. "Maybe... we can talk about it, later?" Her voice was very soft, for some reason.

Their eyes met, and Beastboy felt his pulse quicken as he gazed at her. On impulse, he took her hand in his. "I'd like that," Beastboy said quietly. "I'd like that a lot."

Raven said nothing for a few seconds, as she looked at him with an unreadable expression on her face. Beastboy was suddenly aware that they were standing very close to each other. "Raven?"

She blinked, then seemed to come out of her dazed state. "Y-yes, I... I'm just glad you're ok," she said after taking a deep breath.

"I've got you to thank for that. I'm just glad you didn't get hurt, when I was the Beast."

"I wasn't worried. I knew you wouldn't hurt any of us, no matter what Slade did. You're too strong for that."

It was Beastboy's turn to blush, at that. "I... it was different this time. I... remember being the Beast. I think I'm starting to understand him."

"That sounds like a big step." Raven said. "I can help you with that, if you want me to."

"I'd love that," Beastboy said. He looked into her eyes a moment, then, out of impulse, gently wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a gentle embrace. "Thank you," he whispered to her.

Raven was very still in his arms for a moment, then, Beastboy felt her return the hug, leaning into him slightly.

They stood that way for some time, so engrossed within each other, that they failed to notice the hiss of the Medlab doors opening. It was only at the sound of Robin clearing his throat that they separated, with matching expressions of embarrassment on their faces as they saw their teammates standing in the doorway.

"Don't worry, we won't keep you two long," Robin said. "We were just concerned, when Cyborg lost his reading on Beastboy's vitals."

"Yeah, umm... we just turned it off. Everything's ok." Beastboy said sheepishly.

"We see that, and you do seem to be feeling better. Both of you," Robin said with a perfectly straight face.

"Y-yes sir," Beastboy replied, trying to fight down the blush in his cheeks. He suddenly envied Raven her hood.

"Raven, have you succeeded in repairing Beastboy's mind?" Starfire asked with obvious excitement.

She nodded.

"Good." Robin nodded. "Well, we'll just be going, then. You guys obviously need some time. To rest."

"Yes," Starfire observed. "You are both probably most tired." She seemed to be having more trouble keeping the smile off her face than her comrade.

The three Titans turned and filed out out of the room. Cyborg, trailing behind, looked back over his shoulder, and winked at them. "We'll just have to remember to knock, from now on. Have fun, Garfield!" They heard the three Titans laughing like schoolchildren as the doors closed.

Beastboy shook his head. "I knew there was a reason I kept my real name to myself."

"It's not a bad name," Raven said.

"Yes it is."

"Yeah, it probably is."

Beastboy laughed, then yawned. "So, I'm thinking maybe the others were right, I am feeling a little tired. How could that be, after sleeping for days?"

"You weren't really asleep, that whole time. Your mind was very active, while I was working. And that is a drain, especially given your intra-veinous diet, all the while."

"And you've got to be worn out too, fixing my brain, and all."

Raven actually smirked a little. "Well, I couldn't _fix_ your brain if my life depended on it, but, you're functional, at least. "

"Functional, yay." Beastboy found his shirt, laying on a table beside the bed, and pulled it on. "Well, walk me back to my room?"

She nodded, and accompanied him back to his quarters. Upon opening the door, Beastboy was shocked by the sight that awaited him.

"It's clean!"

"Starfire's work, I expect," Raven said. "She's been fretting your condition for the last few days. She was bugging the others so much, that I think Robin told her to focus on doing something nice for you, for when you woke up. So, she cleaned."

Beastboy shook his head. "I appreciate the gesture, but, now I won't be able to find anything."

"Yes, I'm sure it was much easier when all your stuff was on your floor."

"That's right."

She shook her head. "You're impossible. Now, off to bed with you."

"Yes, mommy!" Beastboy laid down in his bed. Indeed he was tired. Before he could rest, however, he felt he had to say something. "Raven, I've really been thinking,... we're pretty different people, I know, but... I was hoping that... ummm..." He sighed. "... I really wish I could say what I'm feeling right now!" he groaned in frustration. "I owe you that much."

Raven knelt down on the floor next to his bed, lowering her hood, and looking at him seriously. "First off, you don't 'owe' me anything. We have saved each other's lives more times than I can keep track of, since we started doing this. We're teammates, and friends, that's what we do.

"Secondly," she took a deep breath, as though she needed to calm herself. Then she spoke quietly, "...You don't need to say what you feel." She took his hand. " I can _feel_ it. And it's alright, because, I feel the same way."

Beastboy couldn't take his eyes away from hers, as they once again gazed at each other in silence. Something in his heart told him that she was waiting for something, some sign from him, and that words wouldn't do, this time. Slowly, as though he was afraid to startle her, he sat up, and got closer to her. She stayed still, as he drew nearer, eyes still on his. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, leaned in, and gently brushed his lips on hers.

The first kiss was tentative, and fleeting, as Beastboy was still somewhat unsure how such affection would be received. He drew back, and looked at her. She still sat at his bedside, her eyes closed, with a serene expression on her face.

"Raven, did I- are you ok?" He asked nervously.

She opened her eyes, and smiled at him. "Much better than ok."

Beastboy almost felt giddy. To see such happiness on her face was more than he had ever hoped for. To know that he was the source it... it was positively intoxicating.

Trying to calm himself down, just a bit, Beastboy gave her hand another gentle squeeze. "This does change everything, doesn't it.?"

Raven nodded, "True, but sometimes..." she leaned in close, and looked at him with warm eyes.

"...Change is good," he whispered to her as they came together for another kiss.

THE END

AUTHOR'S NOTES

Well, that's the end folks. But, maybe not THE end...

Thanks to you, gentle readers, and your wonderful feedback, I've decided to go ahead with an idea that I had before I even started this story. You may have noticed a slight addition to the summary of this story...

I've decided that this is the first story in a series, with one particular Titan being the focus of each story. So, be on the lookout for the second story in the Titan Quintet, coming soon!

Thank you all once again, and I hope to see you next time around.

Regards,

The Doctor,

19 March 2006


End file.
